


Sharing Spaces

by lipeviez



Series: Sharing Spaces [1]
Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Annoyance, COVID-19, Clueless Sansa, Coronavirus, F/F, Modern AU, Quarantine, Reluctant Attraction, Romance, Slow Burn, Tension, knowing Dany
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-28
Updated: 2020-07-21
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:29:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 17
Words: 44,393
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23897545
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lipeviez/pseuds/lipeviez
Summary: Did Sansa like that lockdown with her family included a person that unnerved her like no other? Nope. Was she going to change her mind? Absolutely not, no way, nuh uh... maybe?
Relationships: Sansa Stark/Daenerys Targaryen
Series: Sharing Spaces [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2105889
Comments: 200
Kudos: 389





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I have no idea why I’m writing another Daensa fic when I have a different one percolating quite nicely (hey, coffee pun!). But this just won’t leave the brain so here we are, contributing to quarantine stories I guess. Hopefully it’ll be short lol. And rating may go up later, haven’t decided. Edit: rating changed to M
> 
> Story notes: Jon is a Stark here, twin brother of Robb. It simplifies things and I just didn’t want to deal with that Targaryen-cest stuff.

Sansa sat in her car, adjusted the mask over her nose and mouth, reviewed her list one more time, and looked at the grocery store. It didn’t look busy but that didn’t mean everything she needed would be inside. Her siblings were working on similar lists at other stores. Hopefully by the end of today they wouldn’t need to shop for a few weeks. But who knew how long this quarantine was going to last.

Once inside, Sansa saw how many of the shelves seemed well-stocked and still others were picked clean. It would be more efficient to start at one end of the store and work her way across but high priorities were disinfectants and toilet paper so she wanted to go there first.

Sansa pushed her cart toward the aisle with the tissues, toilet paper, and paper towels. She shared a small off-campus apartment with her friend Jeyne but with Jeyne going to her dad’s, it didn’t make sense to quarantine alone. She knew she would get lonely. Apparently her siblings felt the same. So if the Starks were all going to hunker down together at their parents’ house during a stay-at-home order which was going into effect tonight, they very well needed plenty of toilet paper.

Sansa grabbed a few boxes of tissues, the limit was three, and moved forward when her phone rang. She’d told her family not to ring her unless it was an emergency, she didn’t want to bring out her phone and have to disinfect it later. Yes, she’d gotten paranoid about germs.

Answering it, she said, “This better be important, Arya.”

“Hey Sans, I won’t be staying with everyone after all. I’m going to Gendry’s. I already told mom and dad but I wanted to give you a heads up.”

Sansa huffed. Arya was only nineteen and a college freshman... how did she convince their parents to let her stay with her boyfriend? She was also annoyed her sister was abandoning her to their brothers and Theon, who Robb insisted had to stay with them because he would get bored without his best friend. They would usually be distracted by Arya’s antics and humor but without her there, they would direct their teasing at her. Then again, at least she wouldn’t have to listen to her sister moon over Gendry for weeks on end. And she would have their shared bathroom to herself.

Distractedly pushing forward, she saw there were several packs of toilet paper left ahead.

“Fine. Just call often. You know how the parents worry.”

Arya laughed. “Will do. Thanks for not giving me any grief. Good luck with the boys.”

“You owe me for this one! Next time there’s an apocalypse, you’re taking on all my chores.”

“I swear it will be done, Lady Sansa.”

“Shut up. I gotta go. Mom’s list calls.”

They said goodbye and Sansa was putting her phone away just as she reached out to grab the last pack. _These sure went quick._

If she hadn’t been so focused on making sure the phone went into the outer pocket of her purse and not the inner pocket (paranoid, remember?) she would’ve seen the other person reach from behind her.

Sansa wasn’t sure who touched it first but her instinct for politeness made her release the pack as it got tugged away by someone else. But then she got angry. People were supposed to stay six feet apart.

She whipped around to face the person. The words got stuck in her throat when she recognized the other girl. Daenerys Targaryen.

“Hey, I had that first,” Sansa said, immediately annoyed with how childish she sounded.

“You weren’t paying attention. And I need it,” was the short reply as Daenerys placed it in her cart.

She didn’t know why this girl made her lose her temper so quickly. They barely spoke at university. Daenerys was a first year graduate student studying to preserve and archive ancient documents, and Sansa was finishing up her junior year in Westerosi history. Sansa would see her at the library where Daenerys worked. She used to go nearly every day to study and read but instead of using the main level where everybody else was, she liked the special collections floor. That Daenerys was often there for her work study job and her studies was incidental. A coincidence. Practically an annoyance, the silvery blonde girl either working the desk or studying at a nearby table, pouring over old books, looking so effortlessly beautiful even while biting on the eraser end of a pencil. Sansa just liked the light and atmosphere on that floor the best. That was all.

Sansa’s brother, Jon, had a work study job in the library, too, but he worked in interlibrary loan. He’d started a master’s in the university’s brewing program. Somehow Jon and Daenerys were friends, she not knowing anyone since she was an international student from Essos and Jon had always made friends easily. He also crushed on the girl so hard it never failed to annoy her. She’d overheard Jon laugh and joke with Robb and Theon one night, stupid talk about girls and who had done what. After much pushing and needling, Jon said he’d gone out with Dany a couple of times. His laughter and blushing, the hints of what happened on those dates, twisted something in Sansa; her chest had hurt and she couldn’t breathe. She told herself she was just offended so Sansa marched into the room and hit him over the head saying they all needed to be more respectful of women.

After that night, she stopped going to the special collections floor as often as she used to. That had been four weeks ago.

“Yeah, it’s a quarantine, Dany, apparently we all need it. But that pack is mine and I’d appreciate it if you gave it back.”

“You snooze, you lose, Stark,” Daenerys answered with a mysterious wink. Sansa couldn’t see her mouth, covered as it was with a mask. But she could’ve sworn the girl was smirking. She knew that smirk well, it being occasionally directed at her when she’d walk in to the special collections floor. Before Sansa could further argue, the other girl quickly turned and pushed her cart away.

Sansa debated following her and just taking it from her cart. But then she’d probably get arrested. Daenerys would report her for sure. She huffed to herself and grumbled as she finished getting as many of the items on her list as she could. Hopefully Robb, Jon, and Theon had better luck with toilet paper at the stores they went to.

Out in the parking lot she watched Daenerys load up her car as she did the same with her own. She didn’t understand why Daenerys needed all that stuff. Wasn’t she living in the grad student residence hall? Or was the school closing all the dorms, not just the undergraduate ones? Sansa wasn’t sure. She’d check when she got home.

Sansa was lost in thought when Daenerys’s car pulled to a stop behind her just as she closed the trunk of her car.

“See you in a bit.”  


_Again with that damned wink_ , Sansa fumed to herself. Dany waved goodbye and drove off. 

_ Wait, what did Dany mean by ‘see you in a bit’? _


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Sansa was currently in the kitchen in front of the sink, drinking a glass of water, and trying to shake the sense of impending doom. Overly dramatic? Maybe. She had become increasingly cynical and grumpy over the last year. Well, since the beginning of the school year anyway. No one ever really commented on it except for Arya, everyone else figuring she was just going through a phase. It was easier to let them think that, though, than examine what might have prompted the change.

But self-awareness and analysis had to wait for another brooding afternoon. Not now. Not when Daenerys Targaryen was due to arrive at any moment.

It turned out that Jon had asked their parents a couple of days ago if it would be okay if his friend Dany stayed with them. The school was indeed closing all of the residence halls and she had nowhere to go. Going back to her family in Essos was an option but he argued to their parents that it was unknown when traveling restrictions would ease to let her back in, and it would be easier for her to finish up the spring semester if she stayed with them. Sansa’s parents were big softies and relented. The original plan had been to put her in the guest room next to the guest room Theon was staying in but after Arya decided to stay with Gendry, Sansa’s mom thought Dany would feel more comfortable in Arya’s room. Arya’s room which shared a bathroom with Sansa’s. A shared bathroom which meant more sharing with Dany than Sansa was prepared for.

The decision had been made yesterday, with the change to Arya’s room happening today, but no one told her until she got back from the store. When Sansa began unloading her car, her mom ran out and told her in a rush. Sansa spent the next couple of hours cleaning and preparing the room and bathroom, and clearing out anything Arya wouldn’t want anyone touching.

Sansa had protested. She’d called Arya, preparing to put her on speaker to protest along with her, but Arya didn’t really care. She had spent the rest of the day dreading the moment Dany arrived.

She put her glass of water down next to the sink and sighed.

“It’s not going to be that bad, Sans. Dany’s great, I think you’d get along with her if you gave her a chance.”

“She could be bringing the virus in, you don’t know,” she argued turning around to face Jon. He looked sheepish and excited and she wanted to slap him. She was so wound up, she knew she needed to get on an exercise routine soon to work off this negative energy that seemed to follow her everywhere. “We should be looking out for Bran.”

Bran had severe asthma and they were always concerned about respiratory infections and viruses that could adversely affect him. This latest one actually terrified Sansa in its threat to Bran and they were all trying to be vigilant with hand washing and sanitizing.

“We’re all potentially coming in with something, Sansa. You were living in an apartment with Jeyne, I had that room above the tavern in town, Dad’s been around all those workers at the factory. She’s not sick and it’s highly unlikely she’s been exposed.”

“Just because you like her, Jon, doesn’t mean everyone else has to,” Sansa countered. She didn’t know why she was still arguing about this. Dany was coming and she couldn’t stop it.

“I don’t _like_ like her,” Jon argued unconvincingly.

“Oh, so she’s fair game,” Robb said as he and Theon lumbered in, each of them grabbing an apple out of the fruit bowl on the kitchen island.

“Guys, she’s not coming here for any of that. I don’t think she’ll like it if she gets hit on every other minute,” said Jon.

“How is every other day, then?” laughed Theon. “That girl is hot. Quarantine will be a lot more fun with a girl like that.”

“You’re all disgusting,” muttered Sansa. But she didn’t leave the kitchen. She wanted to make sure it was all talk and the boys weren’t really going to be like sex-crazed idiots with Dany around.

Robb ignored her and turned to Jon. “But seriously, though. Are you sure nothing’s going on with you two? You talk about her a lot but you’re not together so what’s up?”

At this, Sansa’s ears perked up. _They aren’t together?_ But she didn’t want to seem too interested so she turned around and started washing dishes.

“Well, there’s Ygritte for one,” offered Jon.

Theon jumped in, “But didn’t she break up with you again last week?”

Jon glared at Theon but then looked away somewhat forlornly.

Ygritte was Jon’s on again/off-again girlfriend and seemingly off at the moment. Sansa wasn’t sure what she thought about Ygritte. She played by her own rules and seemed very dominant in the relationship with Jon. But maybe that’s what he liked about her.

“Okay. If Dany wanted to be more, I might be up for trying. But we’re just friends. It’s how she wants it.”

“Then brother to brother, are we going to have any problems if I were to somehow persuade her to go out with me?”

“What happened to you and Talisa?” chimed in Sansa.

“We’re taking a break. She’s been so busy with her first year in med school and all that, I’m tired of her not making time for me.”

“What a stout heart you have,” muttered Sansa sarcastically, turning back to her dishes. She was annoyed with Robb. Talisa was the first girlfriend of his that she actually liked; Talisa would be good for him. They met last year and hit it off quickly. But ever since they graduated university and Talisa continued on with med school while Robb floundered trying to figure out what to do, they struggled.

“There’s no problem on my end if you really like her and she likes you,” answered Jon finally. “I just don’t want it to turn into harassment. She’s a guest.”

Sansa could tell he wasn’t happy with the idea of someone else making a play but he really had no say in what Dany did so playing it cool was his only option right now. _But if Dany only wants to be friends with him then he should let it go_ , Sansa thought to herself, then quickly shoved it away. Why should she care what Jon did with Dany, or had done?

“What about me?” asked Theon.

Sansa heard Jon’s laugh and she smiled. There was no way Dany would go for Theon. He had decent looks but a personality which rivaled that of a twelve-year-old boy did not attract women like her.

“Okay then,” said Robb with a gleeful laugh, sounding like he was going to look forward to the next few weeks.

Just then, Bran’s voice could be heard yelling ‘she’s here’ and everyone except Sansa rushed out of the kitchen and out the front door. She waited until she heard the whole family go outside and slowly walked over to the entryway.

She heard car doors opening, muffled conversation and laughter, and the next thing she knew the boys were carrying in boxes of supplies and a couple of suitcases. Dany carried in the pack of toilet paper that rightfully belonged to Sansa. The girl also gave Sansa another one of those bloody winks. With no mask on, Sansa tried to prepare herself for those lips to curl into a smirk but there was none. Sansa scowled at her but quickly looked away in chagrin when her mom stared at her, mouthing the words ‘be polite’.

“Thank you again, Mr. and Mrs. Stark. When Jon first invited me, I wasn’t sure but really, I had such limited options. He’s a good guy and has been a good friend to me this year and I figured a guy like that had to come from a really great family.”

“You’re more than welcome here,” answered Catelyn warmly. “Robb and Theon, take the toilet paper and put away the rest of the supplies. Jon, take the suitcases up to her room. Sansa can show Dany where it is after she’s done showing her around.”

Sansa’s eyes widened at her mom’s soft command. She glanced at Dany who was looking at her mom but Sansa noted a hint of that smirk she’d been waiting for, one that looked like Dany was trying to hide, and knew it was meant for her.

Ned ushered Bran and Rickon away, and the other boys slowly scattered to their tasks but not before shining their brightest smiles at Dany, who surprisingly returned them with a bright smile of her own. This increased Sansa’s irritation and she wasn’t quite sure why. Dany was only being friendly but Sansa just couldn’t calm herself when she was around.

“Sansa, when you’re done, come to the kitchen and help me with dinner.”

“Okay, Mom,” answered Sansa.

After Catelyn walked away, Dany turned to Sansa and said, “Alone at last.”

Sansa swallowed hard, not really sure what Dany meant by that or why her violet eyes seemed to know so much when they looked at her.

She narrowed her eyes and turned towards the formal living room. The house was not a castle or a large sprawling mansion but a country manor was still quite big with a lot of rooms. The tour could take a while and she didn’t want to spend more time than she had to with the girl.

“Come on, let’s do it quickly,” Sansa said as she started walking.

“I don’t know, I think a first time should be slow and exploratory.”

Sansa barely registered the innuendo of the remark because her feet decided to trip over themselves. She caught herself before falling but when she heard the light chuckle from Dany, Sansa’s resulting anger raged so hot she felt it could burn the entire house down.

She whipped around to send a fiery glare at Dany, one that would shrivel any of her brothers. Sansa was met by an innocent smile which slowly turned into a lower lip bite as Dany tried to hold back another laugh. Her eyes couldn’t pull away from that bite, wondering how much pressure Dany was giving that lip. And suddenly Sansa couldn’t breathe.

Blinking a few times as her eyes met Dany’s, she knew she’d been caught looking. Taking a breath at last, Sansa turned back around and kept walking.

Yup, that settled it. Quarantine was really going to suck.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The lady doth protest too much, methinks


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Sansa banged on the bathroom door.

“Dany, you’ve been in the shower for three hours, it’s my turn, get out!”

Okay, maybe it wasn’t three hours but it sure felt like it.

She heard a muffled voice through the door say, “You can always just come in, Sansa. I don’t mind.”

Flustered, Sansa stepped back. “Just hurry up!”

Sansa went to sit on her bed, a scowl on her face. Sharing a bathroom with Arya had never been this exasperating. She fully believed the reason Dany lived alone in a single dorm room at the grad student residence hall was because no one else could live with her.

Before too long she heard Dany call out that she was done and Sansa waited a few beats before barging into the bathroom. The steam had fogged up the whole mirror. Grumpily, she grabbed a hand towel and quickly wiped down a large portion of the mirror. There were two sinks in the bathroom and hers was on the right, nearest her room. The toilet was also on the wall that shared her room. The shower was next to it with a high window that could be opened to let in fresh air and to let the steam out. For some reason Dany never opened it, which never failed to piss Sansa off.

Sansa prepared her toothbrush and began brushing. She’d been so focused on the mirror and on her toothbrush that she hadn’t noticed that Dany had left her door open. At first, she didn’t see anything but she took one step closer and then she could see her. Dany’s back was to her but she was naked and towel drying her hair. Her skin looked so soft and pale, the curve of her so perfect, the fingers of Sansa’s free hand suddenly itched and she had to clench them. She turned back to the mirror but she could still see her reflection. The moisture on the mirror made it blurry but it was still enough to stir something low in Sansa’s belly. Sansa tried to keep brushing but her eyes betrayed her. Fucking traitors. Dany wasn’t looking in her direction but with the slow, deliberate movements, it was as if she knew she was being watched. This was confirmed when Dany turned to look at Sansa and didn’t seem surprised to see Sansa’s reflection looking at her. Their eyes locked onto each other for only a moment and Sansa felt herself heat up, her cheeks no doubt more reddened than they’ve ever been. Sansa told herself her pounding heart was due to the surprise of it, due to the anger that Dany had done this on purpose. It was an affront, a challenge. Dany was doing all she could to annoy her. Right? She slammed the door and carried on with her routine, ignoring her trembling hands and hard breathing.

*::::*

The oven was preheating and Sansa was currently throwing down bread dough as if it were an enemy that needed destroying. Five days into self-quarantining and she already knew one thing: she was probably going to kill someone before it was over. Okay, maybe not kill. But seriously kick someone’s ass? Yeah. That.

She often had to rub elbows with Dany in the mornings as they brushed their teeth, or wait impatiently for the shower, or deal with a privacy-challenged Daenerys who for some reason refused to close the bathroom door into her room which forced Sansa to see her whenever she went in to use said bathroom.

And every morning, it seemed like Dany was determined to have Sansa catch her in some sort of revealing pose. Like it was an established routine, Sansa would get flushed and flustered, angrily closing Dany’s door and reminding her that the door existed for a reason. It only increased her anger when she could hear Dany’s laughter through the door.

The worst of it was that Sansa couldn’t get away from her outside of their living quarters either. Dany was everywhere. Her favorite room in the house, the library, had also been taken over. It was her quiet space, a place to go to get away from the boys who, with the exception of Bran, preferred the basement room with its big TV and video games, pool table, and small weight and exercise room off to the side. The library held old books and new. Frames on the wall held old maps. Swords and weaponry were also mounted on the wall but it was mostly books. Dany hadn’t shown up the first day she was there but Sansa realized it was likely because the rest of the family wanted to get to know her better. But on the second day, Sansa walked in ready to spend hours doing schoolwork and reading and balked at seeing Dany at a table, laptop open, and writing in a notebook. She had huffed and sank into a leather armchair, opening up her laptop and refusing to be chased out of her sanctuary. They had given each other polite greetings, of course, but that was it. The most annoying part about it, though, was that Sansa fell back into her old special collections pattern of taking peeks at Dany over her laptop and book. But then that reminded her of why she’d stopped going to that floor in the first place and she didn’t want to think of it for one moment longer.

Sansa glanced down at the dough. _Fuck_. It was in shreds. It hadn’t been necessary for her to knead it again after its second rising but she’d needed to get out her frustrations somehow.

Just then Dany walked into the kitchen to get a glass of water. She was dressed in jeans and a well-worn T-shirt. It was her get-dirty outfit. Dany was earning her keep by being in charge of the herb and vegetable garden, both the one that was in a small plot out back and the greenhouse. It was too early for the vegetables in the plot but Dany made sure pests stayed off the growing plants, watered and weeded, and brought in whatever herbs Sansa’s mother needed for dinner that evening. She took her job seriously, Sansa had to give her that. Maybe she was being too hard on the girl. Dany generally stayed out of her way (aside from their bathroom battles), contributed to the cleaning and other chores, took care to involve the younger boys Bran and Rickon in conversation at mealtimes, often engaged in lively discussions with her father over what to do with the deteriorating Stark relics their family still owned, and gave as good as she got with the teasing from the older boys.

“Hmm, are we going to have breadsticks tonight?” Dany asked with a smirk.

Sansa scowled and quickly started gathering up the pieces of dough.

“Oooh, I have an idea,” Dany said, moving to the sink and washing her hands. She then stood next to Sansa, her shoulder brushing up against her. “May I?”

Sansa fought with the urge to hold her ground and, in the end, took a small step away. She was curious about what Dany intended to do. People were allowed to be curious, right?

“This is more for sweet and other flavored breads but...” Dany bit her lip as she rolled some of the smaller pieces together until there were three long lengths of dough. Then she pinched the ends together and began braiding.

At first Sansa was looking at the dough and then she focused on Dany’s fingers. Before too long her eyes drifted upward until she was staring at the side of Dany’s face. She looked so pretty, her face serene even in concentration. 

Wait.

Sansa took another step back and let Dany finish, refusing to look in her direction.

“There. Something nice to look at when you bring it out of the oven.”

Dany smiled at her and just glancing at it made Sansa’s insides flutter. 

“Um, thanks, Dany.”

“Sure thing, Sansa.”

The other girl lingered, like she wanted to speak but didn’t know what to say, which was unusual because Dany seemed to always know what words to use to piss Sansa off. Dany kept looking at her while Sansa nervously got out a pan to lay the braided loaf on. Sansa put it in the oven then busied herself with cleaning, trying not to think about why Dany was still watching her. A few minutes later, Dany slipped out of the kitchen.

Sansa collapsed into the nearest chair. _Was that… was she…_

Taunting, Sansa expected. Overt innuendo meant to fluster her, that too. But this seemed… sincere?

_And why was I being nice to her, too?_


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

If the mornings were hard for Sansa, the evenings after dinner were beyond frustrating. 

Dinner demanded that she be on her best behavior so she had to constantly wipe the scowls off her face whenever Dany’s bright smiles were directed at Jon or Robb. Sansa took smug satisfaction that Dany had a dislike for Theon, who deserved it with all his heavy-handed flirting. Dany played along with jokes and teasing but Theon bore the brunt of her sharper comebacks, which weren’t softened with teasing smiles. When her smiles came her way, Sansa often did what she could to end the attention. Not that she didn’t know how to talk with the girl, her friends and family generally considered Sansa to be quick-witted with a dry sense of humor, she just hated how she blushed and felt warm whenever Dany focused on her. It was easier to avoid it happening altogether. 

But after dinner, that’s when there would be fights over which movie to watch or which board games to play, video game marathons, and any of the other various ways the Stark kids would try to entertain themselves at night. And this is where Sansa would lose whatever patience she’d managed not to expend during the day. Because it was the time when Jon’s, Robb’s, and Theon’s efforts to monopolize Dany’s attention became most obvious. Showing off, loud banter, thinly veiled flirtation. Aside from blunt put downs towards Theon, Dany showed no signs she was uncomfortable with the attention. It didn’t seem like she was encouraging it, more like she didn’t let it phase her. Sansa wanted to yell at the boys over how obvious they were being. She also wanted to yell at Dany to just tell them to stop already so she wouldn’t have to suffer the inanity of it all.

In their phone conversations, Arya would tell Sansa to just go to her room early at night instead of watching the boys fight over Dany if it bothered her so much. But Arya didn’t understand. It was like she couldn’t turn away. A secret part of her enjoyed the boys’ nightly failure to get anything more out of Dany than laughter and teasing. She would purposely stay up as late as all of them to make sure that Dany went back to her room alone. The fact that it pleased her was due to her worry that a soured relationship with one of the boys would make lockdown at the Stark household harder to endure; she didn’t really care if Dany liked one of her brothers. Dany had already gone out with Jon and it hadn’t bothered her one bit. 

Well… maybe it had.

But she dug a deep hole in her mind, hit those thoughts over the head with a shovel and pushed them in the hole, poured concrete over them before piling on the dirt, and rolled grass over it to hide those thoughts away forever.

*::::*

“Mom, Rickon stole all the toast again!”

Bran didn’t normally complain like this so when he did, everyone paid attention.

He and Bran were sitting at the breakfast table at the end of the kitchen. Catelyn, who had been at the stove, went over to Bran to make sure he wasn’t about to get worked up and trigger an asthma attack. Sansa went over to Rickon’s plate to see if there was any toast left untouched. And Dany went to the bread box, got out a few more slices of bread, and put them in the toaster. Sansa looked away to hide her smile at how well Dany fit in with the family dance to avoid a meltdown between the younger boys, and when she looked again, she caught Dany softly smiling, too.

“How come I don’t get a smile like that?” asked Robb, sitting down at the breakfast table next to Bran like he owned the place.

Sansa frowned and went back to her plate at the kitchen island. Dany laughed at Robb and went to her plate which was next to Sansa.

“When you can handle a domestic crisis as well as Sansa and I can, then I’ll think about it,” Dany teased.

“Ah, so are you looking for domestic bliss with my sister?” Robb asked, laughing to himself.

Sansa wanted to scowl at Robb but Dany surprised her by placing a hand over her arm and said, “What’s wrong with that? I think your sister and I would look quite dashing together.”

Robb looked over at them and Sansa played along, lifting up her chin and challenging him to make fun of her and Dany as a couple. She quite liked being in on the joke with Dany instead of being the target.

“Are you nearly finished with your breakfast, my darling?” Dany asked, turning to Sansa with a smile.

“Almost,” Sansa replied softly, suddenly caught up in Dany’s warm eyes.

“I know you’re all joking but I can actually see it,” said Catelyn, coming back over to the stove and fixing a plate, then taking it over to Robb. Her mom winked at Sansa, which resulted in a fierce blush as Sansa looked back to her plate, very self-conscious of the fact that Dany’s hand was still on her arm.

“Thank you, Mrs. Stark,” Dany said, squeezing Sansa’s arm then letting go.

Ned and Theon walked in and sat down, while Catelyn went to fix their plates.

The three of them were going into work. Ned Stark owned and operated a lumber mill as well as a small furniture factory. While the factory was closed, the mill remained open as it was deemed essential due to the various government contracts it had to fulfill. He also found room for the factory workers over at the mill so they wouldn’t have to be furloughed. Robb and Theon worked in the mill proper while Ned was in the offices but he was also showing Robb the ropes of the business. Since Robb did not have any ideas for his career after university, their parents argued the mill was a good backup plan.

In terms of making sure they didn’t track anything in after work so that Bran was protected, they used the old servants’ entrance that led into the laundry room, where they undressed and put their clothes and masks in the machine, wrapped towels around themselves and trekked up the hitherto rarely-used servant staircase to a guest shower on the third floor that was devoted solely for their after-work use. Catelyn and Sansa would take their towels and add them to the washing machine before turning it on. Lots of disinfectant spray and hand-washing later, and so far, so good.

The rest of the family had their own jobs and schedules to deal with. Catelyn was a third-grade teacher and the schools moved to remote teaching rather than close down. She was also the one mainly responsible for getting Rickon and Bran to do their own schoolwork. Online class meetings, digital work, the process had been stressful at first but there seemed to be some routine now. It helped that Bran was a high school sophomore and was generally responsible enough to keep track of his class meetings and homework deadlines. Rickon was harder to manage and Sansa helped their mom a bit with making sure the schedules were printed out for all to see so that the family knew when Rickon wasn’t doing what he was supposed to.

Catelyn didn’t really expect Sansa to chip in as much with the boys’ schooling as she did, though. Sansa knew she was supposed to focus on her own schoolwork, and Catelyn expected the same focus from Dany and Jon. Fortunately as a history major, it was a lot of reading and paper writing, so distance learning wasn’t that hard of a transition. Dany had a similar workload. Jon, as a grad student in the brewing department, didn’t have as much to do in terms of class work, and the university library was closed, but he did teach an undergraduate intro to brewing course so he was busy with that. He usually didn’t come down for his breakfast until much later in the morning.

After Ned and the boys left for work, Catelyn hurried Bran and Rickon for their morning online class meetings. Sansa and Dany were left to clean up in the kitchen. On most days, Sansa would ignore and give hard looks at Dany, remembering whatever exhibitionist behavior she had been subjected to that morning. On this particular day, though, the smiles earlier over how they dealt with Rickon stealing the toast, and the way they teased Robb together, lingered in Sansa’s mind.

Sansa was at the sink washing the dishes Dany had brought over and then she helped rinse and dry them. They worked efficiently and quietly.

Occasionally fingers would brush up against each other as Sansa handed over a plate or glass to Dany. Soon Dany was standing so close to Sansa their shoulders brushed up against each other. Sansa tried not to let it affect her but she could feel how her breathing had shallowed, how flushed she felt at every touch.

Soon enough they were done. Sansa rinsed her hands and dried them on the kitchen towel Dany handed to her. She could feel Dany’s eyes on her face but she avoided looking. It would break the spell somehow to see a smirk or those knowing violet eyes.

“I’ll be in the library today, will I see you there?” Dany asked.

That had been Sansa’s plan. But today was different. Something seemed off, like they were approaching something Sansa wasn’t ready for. She much preferred the teasing Dany directed at her. She could deal with the teasing so much better than this… this…

“Um, no. I think I’ll just work in my room today. Just feeling stressed and need more rest.”

Sansa put the kitchen towel away and when she turned around, Dany was right in front of her. But she stepped away from Sansa and there was that smirk again.

“Some alone time, huh? I agree, it’s a great stress reliever.”

“Wait, what?” Sansa questioned, unsure where Dany was going with this.

“And thanks for letting me know. I’ll be sure to knock loudly before going into the bathroom just in case that’s your go-to. Shower’s good but I’m a bed person myself.”

Sansa gasped in realization and then she shook in embarrassed rage. Clenching her fists, she was about to yell at the girl before she whipped around and stormed out of the kitchen.

“Come on, the opening was right there, I had to take it!” Dany yelled after her with a laugh.

Sansa ran up the stairs to her room, angry with herself for letting her guard down, and trying to keep certain images of Dany relieving her stress at bay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lol finished this chapter up pretty quickly. Sansa's freak-outs are just too much fun.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We’ve been in Sansa’s head so long, let’s see what’s in Dany’s.

Chapter 5

Dany was outside in the garden on her knees in the dirt, gloved hands pulling out weeds, wide-brimmed gardening hat sitting snugly on her head, and her shoulder-length hair tied back in a low ponytail. It was one of her favorite places here at the Stark house. One reason was that it was one of the few places where the boys left her alone, the other places being the library and her bedroom. The other reason was that she really enjoyed the peace that came with working outside. Even though the weather of the North was something she still wasn’t used to, being out in the sun tending to a garden was therapeutic.

Sighing, she sat back on her heels and wiped her forehead with her forearm. As what usually happened when she was alone and had time to think, a certain someone with fire in her hair came to mind.

As if fate heard her thoughts, Dany heard a door open and close and saw Sansa briskly walk in the direction of the wood, not one look in her direction even though Dany was sure Sansa knew she was there. The redhead often took walks there and for a split second, Dany was tempted to follow. It was a place Dany had yet to explore, this relatively large wood on the Stark estate. So large there were deer and rumors of wolves. Dany was curious and wanted to see it but didn’t want to go in alone and preferred not to ask Jon or the other boys. She sighed, settling back and letting Sansa have her time alone. It was the least she could do since she’d essentially taken over every other place from the girl and had pissed her off with that stress relief joke earlier this morning. Dany had spent the rest of the morning alone in the library, had a quiet lunch in the kitchen, then had gone out to the garden.

She wasn’t quite sure what she’d been thinking when she agreed to stay with the Starks. Well, maybe that wasn’t true. Still, Dany almost said no, worried that it might send the wrong signal to Jon. She’d been clear to him that she didn’t like him in that way and didn’t want to give him false hope. But there were certain possibilities that she’d given up on and those possibilities were back on the table when Jon made the invite.

When Dany moved here for her graduate program, she knew it was going to be different and yet had still been surprised by the loneliness. It was hard making friends, not that she was very good at it to begin with but she had a few close friends from her time in undergrad and she missed that sort of camaraderie. Dany buckled down in classes and her library job, and ignored the occasional need to socialize. She wasn’t a hermit, she just wasn’t connecting with anyone, which suited her just fine as dating was the furthest thing from her mind after a bad breakup the previous year. Jon Stark had been the only one who made a sustained effort at getting to know her after student staff meetings so she’d occasionally go down to interlibrary loan during her breaks and chat. Their conversations were mostly surface-level, she certainly didn’t feel like she wanted a close friendship with him but he was friendly enough. He gave tips about local restaurants and bars, where to do her shopping, and general local information she wouldn’t have gotten otherwise. Dany probably would’ve had a heavier bout of homesickness if not for him.

The other thing that helped combat her grad school doldrums was the girl who came to the library nearly every day. Most undergrads stayed on the main level where the large comfy reading room and quiet rooms were. This one came up to special collections, Dany’s floor.

It may have only been a part-time work study job but it was directly related to Dany’s field of study and she loved everything about special collections, spending much of her free time there even on days she wasn’t working. The special collections floor didn’t actually take up the whole floor of the library; a significant portion of the floor contained offices and even lab spaces for the purposes of preservation and restorative work. ‘Special collections’ was actually a large climate-controlled room, with most of the shelves and cases roped off to all except those workers, like Dany, who were authorized and trained to remove the fragile items from shelves and archival boxes. Near the front desk were a couple of tables, which were rarely used as the special rooms that adjoined the main room were the only places students were allowed to examine the delicate parchments, leather-bound books, and other items housed in the room. Basically, it was a specialized space that didn’t get a lot of foot traffic, so the redhead that walked in one day early on in the first semester, spreading out her books on the table furthest from the front desk like she intended to spend hours there, surprised her. Dany liked the look of her but didn’t approach because she could tell the girl didn’t want to be disturbed. She and the special collections librarian agreed that the redhead looked like she needed to be alone and decided not to direct her back to the main reading rooms. The girl seemed down, withdrawn, like something was eating at her, and it appeared to get worse over time.

After a few weeks, Dany began catching more looks directed her way so she would occasionally return them with a smile. She was concerned for the girl, worried about her emotional state and liked that her smiles seemed to cheer the other girl up. More time passed and she was definitely picking up on something. Attraction. The looks from the redhead lingered, and the blushes that came over her when Dany would catch her spoke of more than just friendly interest. Dany also found herself gazing at the girl when she wasn’t looking, often staring at those pink lips that looked so soft and delicate. But still, the girl didn’t try to start anything and Dany wasn’t sure what her own approach should be. In a way, she almost didn’t want to disturb the stillness of their mutual admiration from afar.

Inevitably, Dany found that the stillness wasn’t going to be enough anymore. She’d developed an intense interest in knowing what those lips tasted like. They were early in the second semester and time was running out before the end of the school year. If she wanted something to happen, Dany needed to initiate it. The first thing she did was ask Jon in a completely disinterested way what the story was with the redhead on the special collections floor. He’d laughed, which surprised her, and then completely threw her with the news that the redhead was his sister, a junior in the history department. Needing more information about this girl, Dany gave a friendly invite for coffee after work. After a couple of get-togethers at a local coffeehouse, she felt ready to begin her campaign to win over Sansa Stark.

Dany had covered her interest in Sansa and her dating history by asking about Jon and his other siblings along with their own histories. She’d told him she’d had a bad breakup and didn’t want to talk about herself and he was more than happy to go on about his family. An unfortunate side effect of these coffee meetings was that Jon thought she was making advances and she quickly corrected him. He was great about it, though, and stayed friends with her. The only thing she regretted was not telling him she was a lesbian. Dany had thought she would get another opportunity after she’d gotten a little farther along with his sister. But now that she was here at the Stark house, that omission was coming back to haunt her. She would have to let him know sometime soon as the passes the boys were making were getting annoying. Dany had only tolerated it as long as she had because she could tell it bothered Sansa.

She hadn’t let the lack of women in Sansa’s past deter her. Maybe Jon wasn’t aware of his sister’s full history but whatever the truth was, Dany had definitely seen interest in those blue eyes. She started with flirty glances and frequent smirks. She loved how Sansa blushed in response, how she looked down and tried to hide her pleased smile. Dany started saying ‘hi’ when Sansa walked in, or she’d walk by Sansa’s table with a greeting or a joke. Everything about the girl’s body language encouraged Dany that she was on the right track.

One day, she just decided to sit down across from Sansa to strike up a real conversation. That had been a disaster. Sansa was shocked and getting her to put four words together in a comprehensible sentence had been like pulling teeth. But Dany didn’t give up. She tried again the following day and that time Sansa was prepared. Dany knew their academic common ground was history so Dany used one of the topics of her classes, ancient Westerosi communication methods for her ‘in’ (ravens as messenger birds? how realistic was that?). And it was definitely an ‘in’. Sansa lit up, her intelligence astounding, the way she held eye contact entrancing. Dany’s admiration quickly escalated to more. A casual encounter had been her initial intention but now Dany entertained thoughts that included words like ‘long-term’ and ‘relationship’. As soon as Sansa walked in the next day, Dany went straight to her.

Sansa became braver, too. On the third day of conversing, Sansa shyly asked about how things were going with Jon. Dany shot her a small smirk and said nothing happened with Jon, at the same time reaching a hand across the table to brush against Sansa’s fingers. If Dany had had doubts before, they were gone when she saw how relieved Sansa looked as well as how Sansa’s fingers seemed to put pressure against her own. Pulling back her hand, Dany then asked if Sansa wanted to go grab lunch or dinner some time. She held her breath as the girl blushed; Sansa had gotten so red she wanted to touch those cheeks. Then Sansa agreed to lunch for the next day. Dany felt like she could fly. The plan was to meet at the library after Dany’s last class.

But Sansa never showed. And she didn’t have her phone number so she couldn’t call her. Dany wondered if she’d gotten the day mixed up but Sansa didn’t come the next day either. In fact, she’d stopped coming to the special collections floor whenever Dany was there (she’d made sure to ask co-workers and she knew Sansa had come in at least once). As a check, she’d walked the main level and saw Sansa from a distance, reading and studying as if nothing had happened. Dany didn’t know what she could’ve done that would make Sansa do that. Had she misread Sansa’s interest? Did she scare her off with her invite?

She was hurt. Enraged. And a little heartbroken. Dany realized she had put a lot of hope in whatever had been happening with Sansa. It had only been a few days of conversation but she’d been hooked. Dany had really been looking forward to getting to know the redhead better.

Two weeks after the date-that-never-happened, after she shook off the worst of her anger and hurt, she started walking through the main room and passing Sansa’s table. Dany could tell it made Sansa uncomfortable and she could also see anger simmering in those blue eyes she liked so much. What kept her coming back, though, was the fact that no matter how much scowling Sansa directed at her, no matter how much Sansa tried to hide it, the attraction remained.

Maybe Dany should’ve just gone up to her and yelled ‘hey, why did you stand me up?’ but she liked the angry blush Sansa had when she would smirk as she walked by and so decided torturing her would be more fun. Sansa deserved some payback, didn’t she? A couple more weeks went by and the next thing Dany knew she was running into Sansa at the grocery store, stealing the toilet paper out from under her.

Dany chuckled as she stood up, wiping the dirt off her knees. She’d loved the fury that had been in those eyes that morning at the store. And the rage burned hotly as Sansa gave her the tour of the house later that day. She also loved how Sansa still couldn’t hide her attraction. The looks she’d gotten after her showers told her everything. Whatever lies the girl was telling herself, Sansa was definitely still interested.

Yes, she very much liked torturing Sansa Stark. It was easier to do that than risk the pain of another rejection.

But she still needed to know why Sansa hadn’t showed up that day. Maybe she should let up on the torture a bit and try for a real conversation.

Dany decided that if the opportunity arose, she’d swallow her pride and ask.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note the rating change for eventual mature content


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Sansa got off the phone with Jeyne and sighed sadly. Since quarantine began, they hadn’t really been talking much and it only reminded her of how she hadn’t been sharing much of anything personal with her friend. It had been that way for a while, even before quarantine happened. They were growing apart and, on the phone just now, Jeyne mentioned wanting to live on her own when their lease was up before the start of the next semester. Sansa knew friends grew apart all the time but they’d been friends since they were kids and it hurt to think there might come a time when they would no longer be. Part of her knew why she had been holding back. A large portion of their friendship in recent years had centered on boys and romance with boys, and Sansa didn’t think Jeyne would understand how it wasn’t like that for her anymore.

She let out a ragged breath and prepared herself for dinner, wondering how Dany would try to get a rise out of her this time.

*::::*

“Sansa, will you please pass the broccoli?” Dany asked sweetly.

Sansa glared at Dany who was sitting to her left at the dinner table. Rickon was sitting on her right, talking with their mom who was at that end of the table, their father at the other end. Normally Dany sat across from her or was a couple of chairs away on the same side; in other words, there was always at least one person in between them at dinner. It was a strategic dance that Sansa played, knowing exactly when and where to sit down to ensure Dany wouldn’t be next to her. But today, Dany had out-danced her. Sansa blamed the phone call with Jeyne. It had distracted her. Now Dany’s right leg occasionally brushed up against hers, their elbows doing the same, and it was all Sansa could do to keep from kicking her.

Her anger still hadn’t quite abated since storming away from Dany after cleaning up breakfast. Not even her walk earlier in the afternoon was able to calm her. That joke had put such images in Sansa’s mind, she couldn’t get rid of them. Given that she had become very familiar with a nude Dany, she easily imagined what Dany would look like on the bed, hands on skin, tensing muscles and gasping breaths, those violet eyes looking at her, begging Sansa to join her…

Clearing her throat, Sansa reached for the broccoli and handed it over to Dany, making sure to keep her eyes off the other girl’s hands.

“You okay, Sans?” Jon asked, looking concerned. He was sitting across from her and she inwardly scolded herself for letting her mind wander.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” she answered sharply. “I’m just…”

“Stressed?” interrupted Dany, turning to her, the movement causing their shoulders to rub up against each other.

Sansa gave her a hard stare, ignoring the buzz of excitement that touch had created in her. Outwardly, Dany was the picture of concern and innocence. No one else could see what she saw and Sansa’s anger coiled inside as she recognized how one corner of her mouth had curled up slightly, how the gleam of her eyes taunted her.

“And how stressed are you, Dany? Must be hard having to keep up with classes and be holed up here all day. At least Theon, Dad, and I get out for a while for work,” said Robb who was sitting between Jon and Theon, bringing a forkful of ham to his mouth.

She watched how Dany’s gaze moved down to her plate, unable to keep the knowing smile off her face.

Cutting a piece of ham, Dany replied evenly, “Oh, I’m _very_ good at dealing with stress. Let me know if you need any tips, Sansa.”

It was too much. Sansa let out a loud snort and then gasped, eyes wide at her own outburst. Jon and Theon looked at her like she’d grown an extra head, Dany chuckled softly into a hand, and Robb looked at her the way he had looked at them this morning when Dany put the thought of them as a couple in his head. This gave Sansa the urge to challenge him again and inexplicably, she leaned against Dany and raised an eyebrow at her brother. To Sansa’s relief, Dany quickly picked up on what was happening and didn’t pull away. But then to her horror, Dany dropped a hand to Sansa’s thigh just above the knee, squeezing lightly. How dare she put a hand on her? There was no point to it. Robb couldn’t see under the table. And he wasn’t even looking at them anymore, having just smiled and turned to Theon to inquire if he’d made any headway with Ros. Sansa resisted the blush that threatened to grow and she grabbed Dany’s hand to push it away, only Dany turned her hand around and gripped hers tightly instead of letting go.

Her eyes kept glancing around to make sure no one was looking, focusing on not letting anyone see her trying to pull her hand away. Dany was surprisingly strong, the palm of her hand hot and soft. Sansa stopped struggling when she felt lips brush against her ear and whisper, “I can play if you want to play but I’d rather we not pretend.”

Sansa shivered, goosebumps forming all over her arms as Dany finally let go of her hand, and she turned to Dany who went back to looking around the table, smiling and eating.

Dizzy and off-balance, Sansa blinked a few times as she fought to control her body’s reactions. The anger lingered but other feelings were skirmishing within her, fighting to be acknowledged. Pride seemed to win out for the moment, her unwillingness to let Dany win this round as she had every time Sansa’s anger got the better of her and she stormed off in a huff. She couldn’t and wouldn’t let it pass this time without some push back.

Sansa leaned over to Dany’s ear, making sure her lips made fleeting contact, and said in a low voice just above a whisper, “I’ll keep that in mind.”

The way Dany’s eyelids fluttered, the way her hand gripped her fork so tightly Sansa could see the whites of her knuckles, it sent a delicious chill down Sansa’s spine. She gasped at the power that surged within her at being able to make Dany respond this way. Heat pooled low in her stomach and she quickly glanced around the table to see if they were being watched. Everyone else was caught up in their own conversations.

It was tempting to continue, to see what else she could do to inspire these responses. But Sansa looked down at her own hands and saw they were trembling. Glancing back to Dany, she saw that the girl recovered and was now chatting with Bran who sat on the other side of her. Her dad was laughing and joking with Theon and Robb. When she turned right, she thought she saw her mother’s eyes quickly turn to Rickon. She frowned slightly. Had her mother been watching? The almost panting nature of Sansa’s breath made her realize she was on the verge of attracting attention and that would only lead to more teasing from Dany.

Gathering herself, Sansa quietly went back to her food and barely participated in the rest of the conversations around her.

Dinner took forever but eventually it was over. Sansa helped Jon and their mom clean up, then she went down to the basement to watch yet another video game marathon. Bran and Rickon usually got to go first due to their mom wanting them in bed by ten o’clock. Sansa sat in one of the couches off to the side, drinking a beer. Her situational awareness must have slipped because Dany easily sat next to her before Sansa could think to get up and move somewhere else. Moving now would be too obvious so she let out an exasperated sigh and took a big swig of her beer.

The banter and flirting carried on between the boys and Dany, though Dany seemed more subdued than usual. Sansa noticed how she kept glancing at her, how she kept leaning over as if to say something only to change her mind. She was curious about the behavior but most of all she was tired of being on her guard. If Dany was going to tease her again, she wished she would just get on with it already.

Instead, Dany announced she was heading up to her room.

“Hey, you don’t have to go up so early. We can stop the video games and put on a movie or something?” offered Jon.

“No, it’s okay. I’ve had a long day and a good way to relieve stress is to have an early night now and then. Bed calls,” Dany said, glancing over at Sansa and winking at her.

Looking away, Sansa said under her breath, “And you are a bed person, after all.”

She heard Dany’s soft gasp at her words. Sansa’s lips curled into a smile even as she kept her eyes fixed on her beer. Heat began to rise up on her neck and daring a glance, she saw Dany give her an approving smile. It felt good being on the receiving end of that smile. Like she was finally beginning to find her footing when it came to dealing with Dany’s teasing.

But then she turned her attention back to the boys, her smile fading, feeling uncomfortable, reminding herself that she was still annoyed and angry with the girl. She was, wasn’t she?

Dany said goodnight to everyone and went upstairs. And Sansa felt lonely without her there next to her.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Not long after Dany left, Sansa’s parents came down to the basement. They usually only came down during movie nights, or if it was video game night, then typically only her mother. It was nice to have them both down there and Sansa should’ve been more at ease to have her family around her without Dany.

But she wasn’t.

It just wasn’t fun without Dany there to scowl at. The boys argued over their game, her parents occasionally intervened, the beer grew warm in her hand, and she found herself wondering if Dany had indeed gone up to de-stress.

Surely that’s what the girl wanted to put in her head. Dany was toying with her just as she always did. Nevertheless, Sansa squirmed on the couch, feeling hot, her curiosity burning. She couldn’t stand being there any longer.

Quickly saying goodnight to everyone, she headed upstairs. Sansa told herself she was tired, too. She was very good at lying to herself after all.

The layout of the second floor in the Stark house was different after the remodel that happened when Rickon was a toddler. The third floor used to be attic space and servants’ quarters. But since they didn’t have servants, Catelyn was able to convince Ned to put their master bedroom suite up there. There was still an attic type of room as well as another guest room with a bathroom on that floor, which used to be Rickon’s and Bran’s room before they moved to their own rooms on the second floor. In the remodel of the second floor, walls were knocked down and rooms were enlarged and given proper closets, along with shared bathrooms given to Sansa and Arya, Bran and Rickon, and Robb and Jon. After turning left from the main stairway and walking to the end, one turned right into a hallway which held Sansa’s and Arya’s rooms, a large walk-in linen closet, and at the end a small door that led to the servants’ stairs. Turning right from the main stairway would lead to the hall with three guest rooms, one of which was Theon’s room. Past those rooms and turning left to the hall that ran along the back of the house were her brothers’ rooms, the ones for Bran and Rickon being closest to the corner that joined the boys’ hallway to the girls’ hallway. One could go round and round on the second floor, which the kids used to do when they were younger, but the boys tended to use the guest hallway on the right to get to their rooms.

Going up the stairway, Sansa slowed, feeling nervous. She was just going to her room, to get an early night. That was all.

Instead of turning left, she turned right. She had no explanation for it and therefore didn’t try to justify it in her mind. As she slowly walked past the guest bedrooms, she thought of how Dany gripped her fork after Sansa had spoken against her ear…

Reaching the end of the corridor, she walked into the corner alcove and took a look out the windows. It was just after nine o’clock and it was dark. Sansa resumed her turn about the second floor and inched past the boys’ rooms. Her heart raced even faster, thinking of the moment when Dany’s lips had brushed against her own ear…

Sansa shook away those thoughts. People’s ears were sensitive. Getting goosebumps after Dany’s whisper was an entirely rational response to the sensation of breath and lips touching her ear. Very, very rational.

Rounding the corner, she stopped at another corner alcove and noted the door to the servants’ stair. Taking a breath, Sansa turned to look down her own hallway, her eyes looking ahead towards Dany’s door. She could see the faint light under the door and figured the bedside table lamp was on, which meant Dany was still awake. Sansa had no choice given the direction of her walk, she had to go by Dany’s room to get to her own. Sansa walked quietly down the hall and slowed as she went by Dany’s door, listening. She heard nothing.

Feeling foolish, Sansa moved to her own door. Entering her room, she glanced at the bathroom door which was shut. Quickly changing into pajama pants and a tank top, she took a breath and went into the bathroom to take care of her nighttime routine. It was strange to see that Dany’s door was closed; normally Sansa had to close it so that she would have privacy. Did Dany need privacy? Was that why she closed it?

Sansa used the toilet, washed her hands and face, and began brushing her teeth, all the while glancing at the bathroom door and edging closer to it, straining her ears every now and then as she paused her brushing. Was Dany asleep? Was she reading? Was she doing something else? She felt flushed and so damned curious and wondered what she would find, or interrupt, if she knocked. But she didn’t have anything ready to say. And Dany would just tease her. It was a trap. Dany wanted her to knock. She shouldn’t knock. _Don’t knock, Sansa._

Flustered, Sansa finished with her teeth, huffed out of the bathroom back to her room, turned off all the lights except the one on her nightstand and got in bed. She’d forgotten to close the bathroom door all the way and for one heartstopping moment, she knew why. Sansa blushed at the thought of overhearing Dany being loud at doing… whatever it was she was doing. She tried reading for a while but the throb between her legs, the one that hadn’t really left since dinner, got stronger. It had been a while since she’d taken care of those particular needs and Sansa argued with herself that it didn’t really mean anything if Dany had done or was doing the same thing.

She turned off her light and settled back in her bed, slipping her hand beneath the waistband of her pajama pants. Closing her eyes, she imagined slender, strong hands running up along her body. Her lips parted in an exhale at the imagined sensation, at the soft hair that would fall into her face as lips moved down her neck and chest, at the weight of a body above her sliding into place between her legs…

Then Sansa’s eyes flew open as she heard a loud banging which was coming from the bathroom. Quickly adjusting her pajama pants, she sat up. Another loud rap sounded and she got out of bed and turned on the light in the bathroom. She squinted at the brightness and stayed in the doorway.

After more loud banging on Dany’s door, Sansa called out, “What?”

The door opened slightly and Dany peeked in, then she opened the door wide. She was wearing sleep shorts and an oversized v-neck t-shirt.

Dany said, “I was just making sure it was safe to come in.”

“By knocking so loudly it would wake up the whole house?”

“No one’s in bed yet, Sansa. Just us,” replied Dany with a wink.

“Well, your knocking would have woken them up if they _were_ all asleep. But why wouldn’t it be safe?”

Immediately after the question, Sansa regretted it. She saw the glint in Dany’s eyes, the coy smirk, and she looked away, hoping Dany couldn’t see the truth in her expression. She crossed her arms over her chest, not wanting the other girl to see how hard her nipples still were, and hoping against hope that Dany didn’t notice the red flush on her chest and face.

“Guess I was wrong,” said Dany softly, those eyes still teasing her with their knowledge. Did she know? Of course not, Sansa argued with herself, she was just guessing. But she was thinking about it, those teasing eyes let her know Dany was thinking about her touching herself. And Dany thinking about it made Sansa think about it even more. The urge to relieve the pressure building within her was becoming too much.

Sansa clenched her jaw, refusing to ask the clarifying question about what she’d been wrong about. It was another trap. Sansa backed away and made to close the bathroom door. Just before the door blocked Dany’s gaze completely, Dany spoke again.

“I guess we’re both bed people.”

She froze and gripped the doorknob tightly, glaring at Dany, who just cocked her head to the side waiting for Sansa’s retort. Those eyes, they were enticing. They were expecting her to tease back in the way Sansa had managed to do at the dinner table and in the basement. What would happen if she did? What did Dany want to happen?

Words escaped Sansa. And she was filled with dread, knowing that her silence was only confirming Dany’s suspicion about what she’d been doing.

Dany smiled and licked her lips. “It looks like your stress has returned, Sansa. Do let me know if you need help with that. Goodnight.”

The other girl closed the door and Sansa was left stunned in the doorway. But instead of anger she felt a wave of heat wash over her. Those words had been teasing, just as Dany was always teasing. But they were also flirtatious, the way she had been at dinner.

Her previous teases and innuendos always seemed designed to provoke Sansa rather than hold any serious intent but something was different this time, something real. Or maybe they’d been real all along and it was only now that Sansa allowed herself to see and feel it.

What had Dany said at dinner? She would play but not pretend?

Not pretending didn’t mean Dany wanted something real. Playing was not real either.

She felt an uncomfortable churn in her stomach. It was just another game for Dany, another sign that Dany didn’t feel those things she’d felt all those weeks ago in the library. She hadn’t been serious about her at all.

And yet this thing Dany did with her… Dany wasn’t this way with the boys. She’d always countered their flirty remarks with humorous putdowns or twisted insults. Dany never used innuendo with them the way she did with her. And the majority of it happened when they were alone.

Sansa didn’t know what to do. It would be better if she could just put it all behind her and forget about what happened. But that was hard to do when Dany staying here was a constant reminder of it.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

The following morning Sansa was in the shower, trying to wash away the confusion of yesterday. Curiously, she did not have to wait for Dany before she could use the bathroom today and she was tempted to take a bath, filling the tub slowly and using bubble bath, in order to make the girl wait even longer. But that might have invited other teases so she’d ignored the closed door, stepped into the tub and closed the shower curtain, and began her shower. Staying away from Dany was her plan for the day.

As much as her body had demanded it, she did not finish what she’d started last night. Instead she had lain in bed trying to figure out what was happening, what Dany’s intentions were. In addition to analyzing all of their exchanges, Sansa also focused on Dany’s interactions with Jon. How he looked at Dany, how she smiled at him. They seemed at ease with each other. Friends. Jon’s flirtation was never overt like Robb’s or Theon’s but Sansa could still see the softness he had for the girl. And Sansa couldn’t help but be enraged by it. They’d gone out before, why weren’t they together? Why was Dany keeping him at arm’s length? Was it Ygritte? If that were true, then Sansa was furious at Jon for not making up his mind. Either Ygritte or Dany. He couldn’t have both. She didn’t want to think about the sudden loss of breath that overcame her at the prospect of Jon choosing Dany.

She reduced the hot water enough so that the water was cold but not freezing, closed her eyes, and let the water wash over her. Sansa was so distracted by the sensation, so lost in her thoughts, she didn’t realize she wasn’t alone until the toilet flushed. Blinking rapidly, she looked through the wet, slightly steamed up, but most definitely clear shower curtain and saw Dany at the sink washing her hands.

“What the fuck, Dany?!” Sansa yelled, throwing her arms over her chest.

Dany turned around and while the wet curtain obscured the finer details, Sansa knew the look on Dany’s face could only be described as gleeful. Sansa realized Dany had planned this. This was why she hadn’t taken her shower first.

“Sansa. It’s been two weeks. Surely we’re comfortable with each other by now. It’ll also be more time efficient. You can get some things done like brushing your teeth while waiting for my shower to finish.”

“Turn around.”

“Excuse me?”

“Turn around. I can’t talk to you while you’re looking at me like this.”

Dany turned back to the mirror and her reflection smiled at Sansa. “You do realize I can still see you.”

“Fuck. Whatever. Fine. More time efficient. Just promise to open the window during your shower. I’m tired of coming into a sauna.”

“Done,” Dany replied, turning back around. “Now that wasn’t so hard. I think we’re becoming friends.”

Sansa rolled her eyes but her heart rate increased, suddenly feeling daring. She turned off the water and threw open the curtain. Dany’s mouth dropped open and her eyes widened, immediately raking over her body, but just as quickly they locked onto Sansa’s eyes. Since the water had been cold, Sansa didn’t have to look to know her arms and legs had goosebumps and that her nipples were hard. She began squeezing the water out of her hair, not breaking eye contact. Dany tilted her chin up and swallowed hard. Sansa could see her trying to stay focused on her eyes but her face was getting flushed and eventually, Dany turned around. Eyes in the mirror briefly met hers before looking down at the sink counter, and Sansa let a smirk cross her face at Dany’s struggle. Good. It was her turn to be uncomfortable.

Slowly grabbing her towel, Sansa dried herself off and stepped out of the shower to finish drying herself. She could see Dany taking quick glances at her through the mirror and Sansa tried not to rush; she didn’t want Dany to see any fear or discomfort.

“All yours, Dany,” she said cheerfully as she wrapped the towel around herself and went into her room, closing the door behind her.

Their morning battles changed after that; fraught with a new, tighter tension as they tried to pretend not to watch the other during showers. Sansa could’ve refused to go in the next day while Dany was showering but she didn’t. She wanted to see her. And she could’ve not set her alarm to get up earlier the day after that in order to be first in the shower but she didn’t. Because she wanted Dany to see her, too.

*::::*

A few days went by and Sansa was still confused and angry. Her walks in the wood behind the house became longer as she contemplated the situation. She wanted and yet she was afraid. Afraid to be hurt again. Afraid of stepping in and hurting Jon. It was a rule. People didn’t steal away their siblings’ love interests. It didn’t matter what Jon had said to Robb about being okay with it.

It was just easier to stay angry at Dany. It was easier to think she was being toyed with and that there was nothing really there. And if she said it enough times, it would become true.

Of course, saying it did not really explain why she had thrown open the shower curtain that first time. And she couldn’t argue it had been a foolish impulse because she’d done it again two days later. Sansa continued to let that tension exist between them. If she truly wanted it gone, she would have ignored Dany completely.

Returning from one such walk in the late afternoon, Sansa walked by the garden and was glad to see that Dany wasn’t there. She hoped the girl wouldn’t be in the kitchen. Her water bottle was empty and she wanted a light snack.

Entering the kitchen, Sansa saw several bags of groceries on the floor near the sink but otherwise the kitchen was empty. Given the time, Rickon and Bran were probably done with their school work and were down in the basement playing video games. Jon was likely with them. He adored playing with his youngest brothers. Her dad, Robb, and Theon would be returning home in about an hour or so.

Shaking her head, Sansa got a glass and filled it with water.

“Hi, honey, how was your walk?” Catelyn said, walking into the kitchen. Her mom began emptying the bags and separating things that needed to be wiped down, like cereal boxes and canned goods, from items like oranges that she was going to wash immediately.

“Good,” Sansa said, smiling brightly at her mom, thankful for the distraction. “Need help with dinner tonight?”

“Nope. Jon said he would make it.”

“Pasta night it is,” chuckled Sansa.

Catelyn joined in her laughter then gave her a measured look. Sansa wasn’t sure she liked the twinkle in her eyes and readied herself for whatever her mother wanted to talk about.

“So, how’s it going with you and Dany?”

“I… don’t know what you mean,” said Sansa slowly, not expecting this question and hoping her mother was only going to question her about their fighting.

“Really? I’ve seen the way you’ve looked at each other and I thought…”

“There’s nothing going on,” rushed Sansa, interrupting her and nearly dropping her water. “She’s infuriating, she has the boys wrapped around her finger, she’s always provoking me… she walks around naked with her bathroom door open!” She conveniently left out that she bared herself now to Dany, too, but that was neither here nor there.

Catelyn laughed. “Well, if I looked like her, I’d flaunt it, too.”

“Mom!” exclaimed Sansa, scandalized.

Her mother walked around the island to approach her, taking her hand.

“Sweetheart,” Catelyn said gently. “I don’t know, maybe I’ve jumped the gun on this and should’ve waited for you to come to me. Just seeing you with Dany these last several days made me think things had progressed a bit. You’re not holding back because you’re afraid of what we’d think, are you? I would hope our support of Arya and her ex-girlfriend Jorelle makes clear that we would support you no matter what.”

Sansa’s heart raced and her emotions swirled inside. She really hadn’t been ready for this conversation yet.

“I know that,” whispered Sansa.

Catelyn smiled, squeezed Sansa’s hand, then let go. Her expression said that she wasn’t going to push further and that Sansa could leave if she wanted. Instead of going back to the new groceries, her mother went to the refrigerator where she took out yogurt, then picked up an apple from the fruit bowl and took it to the cutting board.

Sansa nearly left but maybe it was time; maybe she could finally say what she’d started to realize about herself all those months ago. What she now knew about herself.

“Mom…”

“Hmm?” Catelyn didn’t look up but even while cutting up an apple, Sansa could tell she was listening intently.

“Maybe I did have a revelation like that about women, about how I feel about them, at the beginning of the school year.”

Her mother looked up at her with kind eyes. And Sansa had never felt lighter. She smiled, then she laughed. It had been easier than she thought. Sansa honestly didn’t know why she hadn’t told her mom sooner. It had seemed so new to her, she just wanted time to really think about it. And then that turned into a months-long self-analysis, and some denial, too, culminating with her first real romantic disappointment.

But she wasn’t going to think about that right now.

Catelyn came back over and gave Sansa a warm hug.

“I’m sorry if I brought this up before you were ready. Do you want to talk about it? You don’t have to, whenever or whatever you want to say, I’m always here. And do you want me to tell your father or do you want to do that yourself?”

Sansa nuzzled into her mom’s shoulder, feeling safe and accepted.

“Um, yeah. Talking would be good. And I’ll tell Dad and the others, just not right away. We can talk more later but I guess to cut to the chase, this last year I’ve come to realize that I’m gay, I’m a lesbian,” Sansa said, pulling back her head to look at her mom. “I wasn’t sure what I was feeling for a while. A long while. I’m sure now, though. Still thinking stuff through but gods, it just feels good to say it out loud. I’m also really surprised you knew.”

“I honestly didn’t until Dany came to stay with us. You two just spark together.”

At those words, Sansa frowned and pulled out of the hug completely.

Catelyn cocked her head to the side, squinted her eyes incredulously, and asked, “Really? Not her?”

“No!” Sansa insisted.

Catelyn said softly, “She doesn’t look at him the way she looks at you, you know.”

 _She also lied to me about him when I asked her_ , Sansa thought angrily.

“I already told you. She’s just… ugh. There’s absolutely nothing between us. Nothing.”

As Sansa had argued with herself earlier, if she said it enough times, it would become true.

Catelyn shrugged noncommittally and Sansa rolled her eyes. For all her mother’s steel and practicality, she was a romantic at heart. She gave her mother another hug, told her they could talk more later, and began to walk out of the kitchen, still reeling at her mother’s perceptiveness but thankful that she had an accepting family.

“Sansa?”

“Yeah, Mom?” answered Sansa, turning around.

“Just remember our rule for you over-eighteen kids. Sexual activity confined to the bedrooms. You and Dany can christen all the rooms of your own house, not ours. Got it?”

The twinkle had returned to Catelyn’s eyes and Sansa was sure her own face had blushed so much she looked like a tomato. She tried to swallow but her throat went dry so she just gave a quick nod and turned around to flee the kitchen and her mother’s all-seeing eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay supportive family. Hope you're all safe out there, and thanks for reading.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Sansa went up to her room after that revealing talk with her mother. She stripped off her clothes and took a quick shower to rinse off the dried sweat that had accumulated from her walk in the wood. After the shower, she put on a loose-fitting grey t-shirt and a pair of black leggings and lay on the bed, thinking. Thinking about herself and what had happened in the last year.

She was relieved. Floating even. She’d come out to her mother. Part of her wanted to run to her mom and give her another hug for making that conversation happen because she wasn’t sure when she would’ve gotten around to saying anything. Surely not until after Dany left.

Dany.

The name brought to mind that other part of the conversation with her mom, the part where she had lied.

Sansa was not inexperienced when it came to dating. She’d had boyfriends in high school and the beginning of college. She had even led an active social life; parties, bars and clubs being a part of that. But by the beginning of the current school year, her junior year, Sansa knew something was off. Jeyne complained that Sansa rarely went home with a guy. She would argue that she wasn’t into casual things anymore. Jeyne countered by saying Sansa hadn’t had a proper date since late sophomore year. Sansa would say she was just too busy. Their arguments at the beginning of the year had gone round and round, Jeyne becoming exasperated with Sansa’s lack of concern over her own love life, and Sansa secretly becoming concerned over why she wasn’t concerned.

It wasn’t as if she didn’t want someone. Someone to talk to, cuddle with, share soft touches and kisses with. Sansa didn’t know how to tell Jeyne that the guys she’d gone out with just didn’t inspire the kind of interest Jeyne seemed to have in her own dates. True, the upside to that was that she was always in control since she was never wild over them to begin with. They were generally nice, fun to hang out with, but the downside was that when it came to physical intimacy, it was like Sansa’s body said ‘meh’ and refused to do more than disappointedly sigh, faking her enjoyment more often than not.

If she were honest with herself, she could barely remember the last time she didn’t have to fake it.

And if she were brutally honest with herself, allowing her most secret thoughts out into the light, Sansa would have acknowledged that at the beginning of the school year, when she first saw a certain someone sitting on a bench in the main quad on campus, it was like her heart had been jump-started.

Hearts skipping a beat? That didn’t really happen to people, right? Butterflies in the stomach? She’d always thought people made that stuff up or at least exaggerated. The rush of desire for a complete stranger? Only for ridiculous people who couldn’t control themselves. She had never felt any of those things before. Not until that crisp morning when Sansa felt them and more for a girl with silvery blonde hair. And it was electrifying in that she-might-die-from-this-feeling-but-please-don’t-ever-stop sort of way.

Sansa had been going about this romance thing all wrong; the reason men didn’t seem to interest her was because they literally didn’t interest her. How had she not seen this before? How had she not known?

Of course, she didn’t get brutally honest with herself at that time, not right away, and she didn’t acknowledge these thoughts and realizations until much later, which didn’t make much sense considering her sister was bisexual and had gotten nothing but love and support from family and friends. However, logic fell by the wayside when it came to her own feelings. Arya had known about herself from a young age and had come out to the family when she was sixteen whereas Sansa was now twenty-one and was completely blindsided. The possibility just never occurred to her and she shoved these thoughts away far and deep.

The energy it took to ignore and hide away from facing that shock to the system pushed Sansa down. She became more argumentative, more cynical. It hurt to smile. It hurt to do anything.

The funny thing about burying and refusing to label feelings was that it hadn’t stopped Sansa from finding out who the girl with silvery blonde hair was, where she worked, and then using the need to study as the excuse to experience those buried feelings as often as she could.

Sansa started going to the library regularly. Her grades even improved but that wasn’t why she went so often, or why she chose the special collections floor. She told her friends the atmosphere was better and they believed her because she was a history major. She did love being around all that history, and that’s what she kept telling herself so that she wouldn’t dwell on the other reason that made the atmosphere better. Even though she had taken that step of seeking the girl out, she was still very much in denial.

Sansa got more down on herself as the school year dragged on, still unsure how to unpack all these new feelings. It felt like there was a huge weight on her chest and it was only when the girl she saw on that bench looked at her that it seemed to lessen a little. It was frustrating that she couldn’t seem to articulate to herself what she was feeling or what to do about it. But then the girl, Dany, did something that helped.

Denial was much harder to maintain when Dany would send her a smile, or walk by her table to say a quiet ‘hi’, or look like her entire being brightened whenever Sansa walked in. Sansa gradually let down her armor, let her feelings come to the surface, and began to acknowledge that what she was feeling was attraction. And the more she looked at Dany, and the more Dany looked at her, the more she began to accept that it was real, that this was who she was, and that it was okay. And the weight that she’d been wrestling with all year began to go away.

Maybe Dany had sensed that Sansa didn’t know how to make the first move. So Dany did it for her. Their generally non-verbal interactions slowly grew to idle chit-chat and jokes. Sansa couldn’t say they were friends but they weren’t strangers either. Then out of the blue, Dany sat down at Sansa’s table and tried to strike up a conversation. At first, Sansa could barely speak, she’d been so surprised, and being so close to the girl made her uncomfortably hot. Afterwards, she thought she had ruined her chance and she worried that Dany wouldn’t bother with her again. She was overjoyed when Dany came to her the next day as if nothing had happened. They talked about history and ravens, Dany using it to tie in with some of the old parchments she’d been studying.

Sansa hadn’t talked like that with anyone in a long time and maybe she never had. Dany was smart and had a way of turning around Sansa’s words that made her laugh and blush but she was also patient and let Sansa speak without seeming like she was waiting for her turn to talk. The girl was actually interested in what she had to say and it was refreshing and wonderful. Their first conversation was fun and easy, but also heat-inducing and heart-poundingly exciting, and Sansa had left the library that day glowing. Jeyne thought she’d met someone but Sansa laughed it off. She didn’t want to say how she’d had the best conversation with the most intriguing woman she’d ever met. Jeyne would’ve asked questions. Sansa wasn’t ready for questions, not yet, not until she knew all the answers backwards and forwards. The day after that, Dany didn’t wait to come over and they spoke for even longer. The following day, Sansa had worked up the courage to ask about Jon. Ygritte or no Ygritte, Sansa knew he liked Dany and she wanted to know if there was anything there. Dany smiled shyly and said nothing happened with Jon, which made Sansa smile. She’d been so relieved and tingled all over when Dany’s fingers brushed against hers. Dany had asked if Sansa wanted to go get lunch or dinner. Dany’s intent was clear and Sansa’s pulse raced as she thought over what it would mean if she said yes. Because of course this was what she had been wanting since the first day she walked into special collections. A date. A date with this gorgeous, intelligent girl that made her feel things that she’d never felt before. After much blushing, Sansa agreed for the next day.

But then that night happened. Sansa had gone over to her parents for their weekly family dinner. After dinner, she headed down to the basement to hang out with her siblings, and she’d stopped midway down on the stairs when she heard Dany’s name. She had watched and listened to that conversation between Jon, Robb, and Theon about girls; that conversation where Jon had blushed and said he’d gone out with her. His laughter and the backslapping he’d gotten from the other boys made her feel ill. He didn’t give details but the way he acted and the way Robb and Theon laughed knowingly, it hinted at things that tore Sansa up inside.

Dany had said nothing happened with Jon. She’d lied.

The hurt had been unbearable. All of her hopes, her dreams of exploring these desires with this amazing girl, all dashed. And as fast as she could, she transformed her pain into cold fury.

Sansa didn’t go back to the library the next day. Her anger burned even hotter when Dany had turned to smirks and flustering her instead of confronting her; surely the ease at which she’d gotten over something that would have enraged Sansa if it had happened to her meant Dany hadn’t wanted anything serious from her to begin with.

Burying those feelings had become easier to do as a result. The lies she told herself came swiftly and her memories adjusted accordingly. Months of stares, blushes, and butterflies became occasional, indifferent glances. Dany’s flirty looks and smiles became annoying, manipulative teases. Three days of engaging conversation became a few inconsequential words. And the date-that-almost-was became completely nonexistent. She refused to think about all of it.

That changed when Dany moved in. She had worried that Dany would out their past to her family. Strangely enough, she didn’t. And somehow Sansa realized that she wouldn’t. As angry as Dany would make her, as much as she continued to push her buttons, she knew Dany would leave the decision to Sansa about whether she wanted to bring it up.

Living with the girl showed her other things. Every moment with her, as infuriating as it was, chiseled at the walls she’d put up, reminding her of what she had felt throughout the year. How those conversations had set fire to her heart and made her reach for possibilities that Dany’s presence seemed to promise her. How no other potential date had ever excited her as much as that one had. Being around Dany everyday like this reminded Sansa that she had liked Dany and had liked her from the first moment she saw her. She’d gone to the library again and again because she liked her. Sansa’s stares, her smiles, her blushes, had all been because she liked her and wanted more than friendship. Oh how she had wanted. It seemed the entire year was full of ache and yearning for the girl.

And she still liked her.

Instead of snuffing them out, Sansa’s feelings for her had grown over these last weeks. The way Dany didn’t just act like a guest, the way she involved herself, helped Bran with his schoolwork, helped around the house and worked the garden, like this was her home, like this was her family. Even through her annoyance, Sansa saw these things and couldn’t help how they added to Dany’s attractiveness.

These feelings didn’t stop Sansa’s anger at being lied to. They didn’t stop the belief that the interest Dany had shown in her was nothing more than casual. And even if Sansa wanted casual, these feelings didn’t stop her frustration that she shouldn’t act on them. Her brother had gone out with the girl. And he was obviously still interested, even if Dany had hit pause on him for now. Whatever game Dany was playing with Sansa with her innuendo and teasing, she couldn’t give in.

But these were beginning to sound like lies, too. She was beginning to wonder if she was just telling herself this so she had an excuse not to expose herself to the prospect of Dany crushing her heart again.

Sansa looked at the clock on her nightstand. It was about another couple of hours until dinner. That was two hours to prepare, to push it all back down, to put on her perpetual scowl to keep Dany away from her.

The problem was she couldn’t do it, she couldn’t bottle these feelings back up again. _Gods, what am I going to do?_

How was she going to face Dany now?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We finally get Sansa's account of what happened between them.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Sansa sat up on the bed. A distraction, that’s what she needed. Something to get her out of her head before she had to go downstairs for dinner. She could go down to the basement and try to watch Bran and Rickon play video games. But around this time, Dany was probably still down there working out, and Dany was not who she wanted to see right now. Sansa reached for her phone.

After several rings, her sister answered.

“Didn’t we just talk the other day?” Arya asked.

Sansa laughed, lay back on the bed and put the phone on speaker, glad to hear Arya’s blunt voice. “I know, I’m just bored right now. Just tell me what you and Gendry have been up to.”

She listened and giggled at Arya’s story about trying to make bread with Gendry today. Gendry’s housemate Hot Pie had some sourdough starter and a recipe. Gendry had said something stupid about how Arya should let him handle it, and Arya decided that since they had a double oven, they should each make their own bread. But since neither of them had baked bread before, they each tried to cut corners. Gendry didn’t knead properly or let it rise long enough and Arya thought she could increase the oven temperature and bake it in a shorter amount of time. Neither of their efforts was satisfactorily edible.

“All right, now that you’ve had your laugh, tell me what’s going on.”

Sansa took a deep breath. Arya may not look like their mom but she was just as perceptive.

“I came out to Mom today.”

“About fucking time!” yelled Arya, and then she laughed maniacally, as if she had known all along.

“Arya,” Sansa hissed, turning her eyes toward her bathroom door which she’d left open. No light was coming from there so she figured Dany was still downstairs. “How did you know?”

“You only just talk about that Dany girl every time we speak on the phone. Your frustration with her oozes sexual tension. Please just promise not to fuck her on the rug in my room. I love that rug and don’t want to think about her dripping…”

“Arya, stop! And no, this isn’t about her,” Sansa exclaimed, blushing hard now that the image of sex with Dany had come to her mind. And then a small bolt of fear shot through her. First her mom and now her sister? Her sister who had never seen Sansa together with Dany. How obvious had she been? Could the boys tell, too?

There was a long silence. “Okay, rewind. You came out to Mom?”

“Yes.”

“So you’re gay?”

“Why didn’t you ask if I was bi?”

Arya laughed. “I’ve seen how you are with guys.”

“I’ve seen how you are with guys, too,” Sansa pointed out.

“Touché,” Arya answered approvingly. “But seriously, though.”

Sansa huffed good naturedly. “Yup, I’m a lesbian.”

“Good. I mean, I’m happy you know who you are,” said Arya quietly.

Sansa closed her eyes to try to blink back the threat of her tears. It wasn’t often that Arya got all kind and supportive, and when she did, the tears came. “Thanks. I’m happier now, too.”

“Great. Now don’t you fucking tell me that Dany has nothing to do it!” exclaimed Arya, obviously done with being sensitive and gentle.

Sansa rolled her eyes and admitted cautiously, “Well, it’s true I didn’t know until I saw her for the first time back at the beginning of the year but…”

“Wait… so she’s the reason you started living at the library?!”

“Shh, keep your voice down.” Sansa pushed the volume button to make it a little quieter.

“Oh my gods, were you stalking her? Did you put the moves on her?”

“No, nothing like that.”

“Sansa! Holy crap, you just stared at her the whole year and did nothing, didn’t you? What’s the hold up? Why aren’t your lips glued to her lips right now?”

“It’s… there’s nothing going on,” argued Sansa weakly.

“Now you’re making me wish I was staying there instead of here. I could yell at the both of you.”

“But then you’d be missing your boyfriend,” taunted Sansa, seeing an opening to change the subject.

“True. I guess you just have to kick your own ass.”

“How are things going with Gendry, by the way? You do realize you, Miss I-Don’t-Commit-To-Anyone, are the first of us to actually live with a significant other. That’s a big step.”

“Ha ha, I see what you’re doing. But whatever, yeah, things are great and they’ve been great since the last time you asked the other day. Oh, and a couple of days before that.”

“He softens you. Jory never did that.”

“Yeah, I doubt anyone would ever call Jory soft. She’s great in bed, not so much with the emotional stuff. I mean, I know I’m not good with emotional stuff either but one of us has to be if a relationship with me is going to work. Gendry has patience and I like that.”

“Hang on a sec,” Sansa said, hearing Dany enter her room and yelling out she was going to take a shower. She took Arya off speaker and closed her bathroom door. Sansa sat back down on the bed and spoke in a softer voice.

“Sorry. Dany’s back in her room and I didn’t want her to overhear.”

She listened to the shower start and was tempted to make an excuse to go into the bathroom.

“And now that we’ve finished with your attempt to evade my questions, let’s get back to it. Why aren’t you going after Dany?”

“Arya…” warned Sansa, upset with herself for getting distracted by Dany getting in the shower instead of following up Arya’s answer with another question.

“Don’t lie, I know you’re interested in her. Her teasing says she’s interested, too.”

“I haven’t even told you about all the teasing she’s done,” said Sansa irritably.

“Ah ha! So there is more than what you’ve said. I was just guessing. See? She’s interested. You get extremely jealous of Robb and the others. She woke up the gay in you, for fuck’s sake.”

“She went out with Jon a couple of times and he still likes her. It would be wrong.” Sansa inwardly cringed. She’d just admitted Arya was right about her liking Dany.

“That doesn’t seem to be stopping Robb or Theon.”

“I’m not them.”

“And I think she’s fair game. If she wanted to be with Jon, she’d be with him. Going out a couple of times doesn’t mean they had a relationship. She tried him out and she didn’t want him. I think you have a real shot.”

Sansa sighed, not wanting to tell her sister about Dany asking her out or why she’d stood her up. That would only give Arya more ammunition to push her on this.

“I have some other stuff to do before dinner. Please don’t tell Dad or anyone yet about me. I’ve only told you and Mom.”

“You’re evading again.”

“I’ve gotta go. Love you.”

“You like her, Sansa! Do something about it!”

“Bye.” And Sansa disconnected the call, relieved to escape her sister’s relentless pressure but frustrated that it had only brought her feelings closer to the surface, pressing even harder against her crumbling resistance.

The last several days, Dany’s expressions, the way she responded when Sansa would tease back, the looks on Dany’s face when Sansa managed to catch her watching her in the shower, these things were for her, not for Jon.

Sansa wasn’t sure if she was ready to address everything that happened between them in the past but maybe she could do more than just play Dany’s game of teases and smirks. If she enacted a sort of truce and was more friendly, how would Dany respond? Would Dany soften enough to give Sansa a chance to get comfortable with her again?

*::::*

Dany was working out in the basement exercise area in the late afternoon. In addition to a weight machine and free weights, there was also an exercycle and a treadmill, exercise balls and resistance bands, yoga mats, the works. She normally liked going for runs outside but didn’t feel comfortable on the winding country roads outside of the Stark estate. This was the next best thing.

Bran, Rickon, and Jon were distracted by video games. Robb, Theon, and Mr. Stark hadn’t yet come home from work. Mrs. Stark should be getting back from the store any minute now and Sansa was out on her walk. Dany could work off some of the frustration of the last several days without being bothered by anyone.

And there was a lot of frustration.

That dinner. Sansa’s lips against her ear. The redhead had never been like that with her before. And later that night when she heard Sansa go into her room and get ready for bed, Dany was patient. She hadn’t been sure if Sansa was going to do what she hoped she would do but after waiting an appropriate amount of time, she knocked loudly on the bathroom door. When she saw Sansa’s face, she knew. It was all she could do to keep from approaching to inspire Sansa’s responses with more than just words. Holding her hand earlier at dinner had made her crave even more of Sansa’s skin and the flushed angry glow of Sansa’s face after she’d been interrupted from pleasuring herself was captivating.

When she had intruded on Sansa’s shower the following morning and got her to agree to being allowed to enter the bathroom when the other was in the shower, she felt triumphant. She had thought of so many teases that could happen to make the other girl blush. But Dany hadn’t planned on Sansa ripping back the shower curtain. She hadn’t thought she would see all of that wet skin without a steamed-up curtain between them. It took her breath away. Her stomach flipped and heat grew between her thighs. For a split second, she wondered if Sansa intended to do more and her heart had pounded, hoping she would see a sign that Sansa wanted her to cross the few feet that separated them. But it had only been a challenge and Dany reluctantly turned around to avoid letting Sansa see how much desire Dany was feeling.

The days that followed increased this desire. She was surprised when Sansa had walked in the next morning, having fully expected Sansa to not come in at all during her shower. She was even more surprised when Sansa actually got in for an early shower the morning after that, knowing that Dany would take advantage and enter. The smirk Sansa had given her told Dany that the redhead had expected her.

This took teasing to a whole new level and she wasn’t sure who was in control anymore. As a result of this tension, Dany disengaged from her normal verbal sparring with Sansa. It was hard to keep her wits about her when Sansa was around, when all she could see were her knowing eyes and that wet skin she craved.

She could tell that Sansa also seemed to be at a loss for how to interact with her now that they both knew they were intentionally showing their bodies to each other. At least Dany wasn’t the only one with eager, lustful eyes in the morning.

And this was all just physical lust. The whole other thing Dany felt for Sansa which involved longing, heartache, anger, confusion, and tenderness… they complicated things. She thought she’d been able to manage those feelings. But seeing Sansa in her home, seeing her kindness and care for her family, she’d been reminded of that girl in the library who’d crept into her heart. She knew she had secret hopes when she came to stay here, which were more like fantasies at the time, dreams of a happy reunion and effusive apologies and explanations. She also knew that realistically, the only thing she would likely get was a disappointed closure. What Dany had not expected was how her hopes would grow back to the levels she’d felt after Sansa said yes to a date.

Flustering Sansa, making her angry, these things had been fun. But Sansa responding, her breath against her ear, the grip on her hand, the challenge in her eyes when she’d been naked in front of her, Dany no longer wanted to tease her. She wanted to be with her.

Dany let out a ragged breath and got off the treadmill. Grabbing her towel, she walked out of the exercise area, gave a quick wave to Jon and the younger boys, and headed up the stairs.

Lost in her thoughts, Dany quietly entered her room. She went into the bathroom and before she could turn on the light, she heard Sansa say, “I came out to Mom today.”

Right away, Dany knew she should step back into her room and close the bathroom door. This wasn’t something she should overhear. But almost immediately she heard a girl’s voice on speaker phone yell out, “About fucking time!”

She barely registered that the girl Sansa was talking with was her sister Arya. When Arya mentioned her name and the next moment begged Sansa not to fuck her on the rug, the rush of blood in her ears and the heat in her chest was overwhelming. Turning to the rug in her room, she could fully imagine taking Sansa there but that image could wait for another time when she was alone. For now, she turned her attention back to Sansa’s conversation.

Part of her felt a strong empathy for the girl. She hadn’t realized the reason Sansa struggled for so much of the year was because she had been coming to terms with her sexuality. And from the sounds of it, Dany had been the catalyst; Sansa came to the special collections floor because of her. Dany didn’t know whether to feel flattered or feel regret. She considered how she’d handled the girl at the beginning. It hadn’t been an aggressive push; she’d been slow and deliberate in her pursuit. She had taken her time with smiles and soft greetings, relishing in the redhead’s blushes and pleased smiles, working her way up to actually sitting down with Sansa. And after three days of actual conversation, Dany had asked her out. Certainly not unusual, and they’d been circling around it all year, but for someone who was still figuring out her attraction to women, maybe it had been too hurried. Perhaps Sansa really had been scared off and that’s why she didn’t show up that day. In the aftermath, maybe Dany should have approached Sansa with sensitivity instead of provocations.

But Sansa didn’t have the look of someone who was shy and embarrassed when Dany sought her out in the main reading room. Instead there had been anger and it looked entirely focused on Dany. Like something had happened that Dany was being blamed for. Unfortunately, Sansa wasn’t sharing much of their past with Arya so she was unlikely to overhear any explanation for being stood up that day. And Dany began to feel guilty for eavesdropping; that wasn’t how she wanted to get to know the girl, so after Sansa told Arya there was nothing going on, she crept back to her room and out into the hall. Then she loudly re-entered her bedroom and went to turn on the light in the bathroom, yelling out to Sansa that she was taking a quick shower.

Dany quickly began stripping off her sweaty workout clothes and heard Sansa close her bathroom door. Sighing, and trying to clear her mind, she walked back into the bathroom and turned on the shower.

She didn’t know how much time had passed but the next thing Dany knew, Sansa walked into the bathroom. Dany turned her face to hide her smile, relieved that whatever else the girl had discussed with her sister didn’t change what was happening between them. Not that she knew _exactly_ what was happening between them anymore. Dany was stirred from her thoughts when Sansa spoke.

“Did you have a good workout?”

Dany turned to her, surprised, almost suspicious. Sansa was facing the mirror, washing her hands. “Yes, I did.”

“Good. I keep meaning to work out more regularly, but you know, stupid synchronous and asynchronous online classes, finals coming up, all those papers to write, house chores here, it’s hard.”

She was stunned. Was Sansa actually trying to have a regular conversation with her? The redhead sounded unsure, as if talking this way took effort. But still… it was an effort.

Turning off the water, Dany said, “You do walk in those woods pretty regularly. I’m sure that’s a real workout by itself. I keep meaning to explore but I don’t want to go in alone.”

She bit her lip, pulled back the shower curtain, and quickly grabbed her towel because now wasn’t really the time to play their morning game. Dany had left an opening and she wondered what Sansa would do with it.

“Maybe you can join me one of these days,” Sansa offered, turning her head slightly in Dany’s direction before turning back to the mirror. She began to brush her hair, brushing slowly and evenly, as if to give the impression that she didn’t really care if Dany responded or not.

Dany smiled, took a couple of steps towards Sansa, and gently pressed a hand on Sansa’s shoulder before dropping it and saying softly, “I might take you up on that. See you at dinner.”

Sansa nodded her head and Dany went into her room, this time partially closing the door behind her. After all, she didn’t want Sansa to think things had changed too much by denying her the opportunity to see her body if she walked by the door. Her feelings at the moment, however, demanded that a portion of her room be out of sight so she could do a short happy dance. Sansa’s attitude could mean anything but hope flared within Dany. She tried to tamp it down. She didn’t want to get ahead of herself. But it was hard not to think about what this meant for the probability of her and Sansa making Arya angry about her rug.

Very, very hard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit of progress. :)


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

“Dany, did you know that the seasons in ancient times were very different than they are now? Winters could last for years. Same with the other seasons. It’s only been in modern times that the seasons are reduced to around three to four months or so each.”

Sansa was sitting across from Dany, watching her talk with Bran who was sitting between them at the end of the table in what was usually her mother’s chair. Bran was a very bright, curious fourteen-year-old and he often wanted to talk about things he’d just read. It sounded as if he’d just read a book or a chapter on historical weather patterns. Dany smiled at him indulgently, which made Sansa smile at her. They were both well aware of the weather changes in ancient Westeros. Sansa was a history major and one of Dany’s majors in undergrad had been history, too (the other was linguistic anthropology with a minor in chemistry). Before she could wipe the smile from her face, though, Dany’s eyes darted towards her and caught it. She quirked an eyebrow at Sansa and instead of scowling, Sansa chose to huff out a small chuckle and roll her eyes.

After this exchange, she briefly scanned the table and noticed her mother was the only one looking in their direction. It wasn’t exactly an interesting conversation for the others so no one else was paying any attention to them. Sansa felt heat rise up her neck and she looked away, telling herself her mother could look all she wanted. There was nothing to see. Or rather, only a little thing to see. Friends. That’s all. Right?

“I was also reading about ravens again. People may laugh about them as messenger birds but they are actually quite intelligent.”

As Bran went on about ravens, Sansa and Dany shared another look, this one softer, remembering the topic of their first real conversation.

“I always wondered why the ravens didn’t eat the parchment, considering what parchment is made of,” interrupted Sansa. It was meant as a kind of joke and the smile from Dany made Sansa feel warm inside.

“Oh yeah, I forgot, it’s not paper, right? It’s um…” Bran said trailing off, his excitement about discussing something else he’d read very clear on his face.

“Animal skins,” said Dany, turning away from Sansa to look at Bran. “Parchment is made from specially treated animal skins which is why they’re better rolled up than folded. And modern preservation methods of old documents require knowing whether the article is parchment or paper made from wood pulp or some other medium, and even which writing utensils and the composition of inks or paints used.”

Sansa watched Dany and Bran have a short discussion about different animal skins and how they’re treated to make parchment and vellum, and she couldn’t help how she stared at Dany’s mouth while she spoke. They were nice, full lips and Sansa wondered how soft they would be if she kissed them. Or how firm they would feel as they nibbled on her throat. A small gasp escaped before she could hold it back and she quickly looked down to her plate of spaghetti. Sansa was expecting some sort of teasing look from Dany when she brought her eyes back up but the girl only gave a fond glance before turning back to Bran.

She went back to eating her food and steadfastly refused to look at her mother. There were only so many knowing looks she could receive in one day.

*::::*

Dany and Sansa entered the house and went to the kitchen around mid-morning the next day. Sansa wordlessly grabbed glasses, filled them with water, and gave one to Dany. As she drank, Dany couldn’t help wishing they could hang out the rest of the day.

She hadn’t expected Sansa to ask her to go on a walk with her this morning after only bringing it up yesterday. While in the shower, Sansa burst in and said she was going into the wood right after breakfast. Dany hadn’t known what to say right away but after watching Sansa fidget a little, she realized what Sansa wanted and she asked if Sansa wanted company.

The walk had been more like a tour than a private moment between friends. They’d hardly talked and when they did, it was generally about school and what they were hoping to do after they got their degrees. The redhead wanted to go into academia and Dany agreed that being a professor would be a good fit for her, considering how commanding and entrancing she was when sharing what she knew about the woods. Sansa spoke of the trees, the soldier pines, sentinels, oak, and ironwoods her father’s lumber company harvested, and the strange weirwoods in the Godswood, which was a portion of the wood on the Stark property. She knew so much about the woods and also spoke of the First Men and the old gods, and Dany was transfixed by Sansa’s fierceness while she spoke, like she could be a queen from a time long ago. Dany had learned more than she thought she would ever know about the Wolfswood and how it was once a vast forest that had been gradually reduced to smaller national preserves that abutted various private lands. After walking for a while, Dany had asked at one point if they’d crossed over into the preserve but Sansa merely smiled and said the Stark wood was so large, it would take them a couple of hours on foot to reach the edge of their property.

Even though they hadn’t really spoken about anything too personal, Dany did notice how Sansa was making it a point of looking at her when she spoke, of staying relaxed when Dany poked fun at her a bit, and that she herself had had a lot of fun just being silent with someone who didn’t feel the need to fill every moment with meaningless chatter. Dany appreciated that, especially after all the efforts of Robb and Theon to get her attention with their jokes and their never-ending stories.

Dany also appreciated all the shy looks Sansa directed her way when the redhead thought she wasn’t looking. It was like the library again, the looks and the blushes. It was at the end of their walk, when they were approaching the house, that she came to realize Sansa was indeed recreating the slow-build of their connection. She wasn’t sure why they couldn’t just jump back to the point where they were talking freely but this worked, too.

She put her glass next to the sink and Sansa finally spoke.

“I had fun,” said Sansa, almost nervously. “We should… uh… do that again soon.”

“Definitely. And I’m sure my legs will kill me tomorrow so maybe in a few days?”

Sansa smiled at her and nodded.

They had classes to get to so Dany resisted the urge to give her a hug and just did a half wave as she left the kitchen.

*::::*

These softer encounters continued over the next several days. Mornings were no longer battles but they were still very much heated. Maybe even more so now that Sansa’s anger was nowhere to be found and their looks at each other in the shower were more brazen.

Dany also took to sitting with her at dinner and in the basement after dinner. Conversations weren’t very long or in depth, and the boys still paid Dany more attention than Sansa’s jealousy was comfortable with (she wished Dany would just tell them to fuck off once and for all), and it was all so tentative and fragile, but Sansa appreciated how Dany didn’t try to speed things along with her. A few comments here, some looks and smiles there, it was a nice, slow pace that made letting down her guard feel more natural and earned.

It also made their time in the library much more comfortable. Final exams were in another week and a half and they were busy trying to finish up end of term assignments, so the two of them spent more hours in the library together. Sansa couldn’t resist the pull to observe Dany when she wasn’t looking. She liked that Dany seemed more relaxed now that Sansa stopped scowling at her.

She realized she’d missed it; not going to special collections when Dany was there over that last month before lockdown. She’d missed watching her.

As much as Sansa enjoyed the slow pace of this truce, she began second-guessing whether it was perhaps too slow. With mostly silence and only a brief exchange now and then, Sansa pondered the next step. What was the next step? Was this enough or could they be more?

Dany would read, write notes, nibble on her pencil’s eraser, every now and then sharpening her pencil with her little sharpener. After two days of this, Sansa muttered, “You know, mechanical pencils are less effort.”

The two of them were sitting at the table, each on opposite sides. At Dany’s silence, Sansa looked up from her laptop and saw what seemed to be a mock offended expression. Eyebrow quirked up, mouth open as if in protest, but the eyes… they sparkled, as if they’d been waiting for Sansa to interact with her all this time.

“History buff that you are, I’m sure you can appreciate the greater functionality of a good old-fashioned wood pencil,” Dany said, her voice somehow both patient and teasing.

Sansa bit her lip. She was no longer fearful of being teased but knowingly walking into it was something else altogether. She could definitely sense a trap here. Dany wanted her to engage. And as with most things that had to do with Daenerys Targaryen, she couldn’t resist. Sansa had to know what she was being lured into. What form of teasing could be found in a discussion about pencils?

“More functional? How so? They write, there’s an eraser at the top. Mechanical pencils do the same thing but keep their sharpness without needing to use a sharpener. I’d say the improvement is obvious.”

“Ah, but the texture of the thing. I’m afraid plastic with a soft rubber grip is not as appealing to me as the wood, the feeling as the lead dulls with writing, how it changes the lines of the letters on the paper when it does.”

Dany was smiling now and Sansa had to fight against the heat that was growing up her neck. The air was shifting as they spoke, filling with that energy she’d felt in those conversations she’d had with Dany on the special collections floor.

“Fine. But having to sharpen all the time, doesn’t that get annoying?”

“On the contrary, I find it relaxing. I enjoy the repetitive nature of it, being able to sharpen the point to where I want it, blowing off the shavings when I’m done. It’s about as satisfying as watching a Rube Goldberg machine in action.”

Sansa couldn’t hold back the chuckle at the image of Dany fascinated by a Rube Goldberg machine. Did she like that or was Sansa just being fed a line? She cautiously decided to make fun of her.

“I’m surprised you don’t use a quill then, if you’re so into obsolete writing instruments.”

“Now we’re talking,” Dany said with relish.

At this, Sansa scoffed in disbelief. She really was being played with.

“I’m serious. You mean to tell me you haven’t been fascinated by the feather quill and inkwell? I’ve seen what you read for fun – ancient songs and poetry. It’s such a romantic gesture, writing a love letter using a quill. Dipping the nib into the ink until it’s at the perfect level of wetness. Smooth, even strokes on parchment to ensure the letters are legible without blots. Having to hold the quill with your fingers at the correct angle, and not too much pressure or you risk tearing the parchment or breaking the shaft. Feeling the need to dip again, it only works when it’s wet with ink after all, and you have to dip every few words or so. More smooth strokes, dipping, and so on. Repetition is comforting and addicting, Sansa.”

Sansa’s blush was surely visible. The way Dany said her name was like velvet brushing against her chest. The energy around them crackled and she hadn’t been able to stop herself from imagining something else entirely at Dany’s words. Fingers. Wetness. Pressure. From the look on Dany’s face, it would seem the girl knew exactly what was on Sansa’s mind.

She glanced down, her heart racing. A jolt of bravery came to her and she asked softly, “Are you recommending I try it?”

When Sansa looked back up, she saw Dany give a coy smile before turning back to her work and saying, “Writing love letters?”

Sansa blushed harder and turned back to her laptop. The inflection of her words, the obvious innuendo, it was making her pulse race. Her bravery held up and she murmured, “Using a quill.”

Glancing again at Dany, Sansa noticed her glazed eyes and how she licked her lower lip before she said, “Are you saying you’ve never used one?”

Sansa wasn’t sure how she was able to hear Dany’s words over the thundering of her heart. She was fairly certain Dany just asked if she’d ever been with a woman.

Swallowing hard, Sansa replied in a low voice, “Never.”

Dany smiled, looking almost pleased and most definitely flushed. “Then yes, I do recommend it.”

When Sansa didn’t respond right away, Dany went back to her textbook. Sansa fruitlessly tried to work for another five minutes, her mind swirling with images of Dany above her and beneath her, until she felt the need to escape the heat of the room. But before she could move, Dany spoke again.

“Why did you stop coming to the special collections floor?”

It was the last question Sansa expected. And the air shifted to a different kind of tension, one which made Sansa worry.

“I didn’t.”

Dany quirked an eyebrow, expecting her to elaborate.

“I still went sometimes, you just weren’t there,” Sansa said stiffly. Ugh, how easily she fell into old habits of denial.

“You weren’t avoiding me?”

Sansa shook her head, forcing a smile, which probably looked as false as it felt. “That’s silly. Avoiding you would imply that your presence had some effect on my being there to begin with, which it didn’t. My schedule changed, that’s all.” She tried to add a teasing lilt at the end, to keep it light, to keep Dany from questioning further.

She noticed a slight frown begin to grow on Dany’s face. Dany wasn’t going to be pulled into light banter.

“If you weren’t avoiding me, then why didn’t you show up for lunch that day like we planned?”

Even after all this time, Sansa’s anger flared briefly at the memory. At how hurt and jealous she had been. But another part of her had started to wonder if she’d overreacted that day. If perhaps Dany’s denial was not really a lie and had been more along the lines of what Arya had said; that whatever had happened with Jon didn’t mean anything to her which was why they weren’t together.

She should tell the truth. Sansa knew this. But talking about that day meant talking about her feelings. What they were then and what they were now. It wasn’t just attraction or a crush for her. It had always been more than that. And that just seemed too scary and big to confess when she still wasn’t sure what Dany’s feelings were. The fact that Dany was here at Jon’s invite still made her wary in spite of everything that had happened between them in the last week.

Why couldn’t Dany have left it alone for a little while longer?

Sansa said in a thin voice, “I was bu–”

“Don’t,” interrupted Dany, her voice catching which made Sansa’s heart stutter. “I’ll save you the trouble and just skip to my response. If you were truly busy or had a sudden change in schedule, a polite person would’ve sought me out the next day to apologize, maybe reschedule. Not glare at me as if I were a white walker. Not disappear without a reason why.”

She watched Dany as she spoke, and she saw how the other girl withdrew, how a mask came down and closed her off, and Sansa flushed with shame.

Dany sighed frustratedly and looked back down at her book. Sansa sat nervously, trying to focus on her own class work but she found it difficult now that she knew Dany was angry at her. The library felt cold, the energy between them gone.

Sansa tried to muster her courage to apologize, to say something that would help dig her way out of this hole but before she could, Dany abruptly closed her book and stood up. She packed up her things and left the library without saying another word. And Sansa sagged in her chair.

She’d blown it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a bit of angst because I can't resist. lol
> 
> Also, looking at my outlines, we're at 3-4 chapters to go. In the homestretch!


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

In the days immediately after Sansa stood Dany up all those weeks ago, she had gone to the university library out of routine (or a bout of masochism), even going to the special collections floor a couple of times when she knew Dany wouldn’t be there. Eliminating Dany from her thoughts hadn’t been easy, and while her anger alleviated it, the ache inside didn’t go away. Days of pretending nothing was wrong were taxing and she had started to wonder if she should look for other distractions, like a rebound. Jeyne had done it often enough. Out of habit, she started looking at guys in the library but it churned her stomach to regress in that way. She’d come too far in realizing her sexuality to suppress that, too. Unfortunately, gazing at other women in the library only increased her pain as her heart and mind would bring up comparisons to the girl she was trying to forget. A rebound was out of the question. Then Dany began walking by her in the main reading room with her infuriating smirks; all of Sansa’s energy became focused on not letting her get to her, to avoid remembering anything that had to do with the silvery blonde.

Sansa’s pain at the time hadn’t let her wonder whether her behavior had hurt Dany. Had Dany been lost in confusion at Sansa’s disappearance? Had the walk-by’s and smirks in the main reading room been her way to deal with how Sansa ignored her? She had previously thought it was Dany showing her indifference but now Sansa wondered if Dany had been provoking her out of her own hurt and anger.

Dany didn’t speak or look in her direction at all that evening at dinner after that exchange in the library. Afterwards, in the basement with the Stark kids, Dany made it a point to sit next to Robb, who lorded it over Jon and Theon. He kept it tongue-in-cheek and Dany didn’t change how she treated the boys but Sansa felt her sitting with them and not with her as the slap it was intended to be. When Dany went up to bed, Sansa quietly chased after her but was ignored. Dany brushed her teeth and washed her face without acknowledging Sansa’s presence at all.

Given how she was being treated, Sansa spent a lot of time thinking about Dany’s side of things and she felt terrible for what she had done. Dany shouldn’t have given her another chance after being treated so horribly back then, and she didn’t blame her for what was happening now.

She lay in bed feeling sorry for herself when her phone rang. It was Jeyne. Sansa answered it and they spent the first few minutes catching up, filling the space with small-talk. Then Jeyne brought up the reason for her call.

“Hey, remember how I said I was leaning towards moving out?”

“Yeah,” muttered Sansa, feeling her heart lurch. Here was someone else about to abandon her.

“A cute studio apartment near campus will be opening up in a couple of months and I put down a deposit and first month’s rent.” Jeyne was bubbly, practically bursting with her news.

“Oh. I see,” replied Sansa. She’d expected Jeyne to say that she’d made her decision, not that she had already made steps to make moving out happen.

“That’s it? We’ve been friends since we were kids and that’s all I’m going to get?” Jeyne hissed in frustration. “Sansa Stark, I don’t understand. The whole of junior year has been one huge character shift for you.”

“No, it hasn’t.”

“Yes, it has! We used to talk about everything and now you barely share anything with me. Did I do something?”

“No, you didn’t do anything,” snapped Sansa. But then she softened. Jeyne really hadn’t done anything. Everything that happened was all on Sansa. Her heart started to pound as she told herself it was time to tell her friend. “Jeyne, I’m sorry. You’re right. Stuff _has_ happened this last year and I didn’t know how to tell you. It was something I had to work through on my own.”

“What? What is it?” Jeyne sounded close to tears and it made Sansa feel awful that she’d been hurting her friend by holding back from her for so long.

“I realized I’m a lesbian.”

Jeyne didn’t say anything for a long time but Sansa heard her breathing. She could only imagine what Jeyne was thinking and she wished the girl would hurry up and start talking again.

“Jeyne?”

“I’m here. Sorry, I just… got lost in thought,” Jeyne said softly. Then she chuckled. “You know, this actually explains some things.”

And Sansa half sobbed and half laughed in relief. Her friend was still her friend.

They spent the next couple of hours talking, about what had gone on during the year, and about Dany. Jeyne listened to it all, making jokes now and then, and Sansa was grateful. The only advice Jeyne gave was not to give up. That was easier said than done but Sansa appreciated that Jeyne didn’t get in her scheme-planning mode which typically happened whenever a boy had caught Jeyne’s eye or Jeyne wanted to fix Sansa up with someone.

Jeyne offered to pass on the studio apartment but Sansa wouldn’t let her. Their friendship would survive not living together, she was sure of it, and she had heard the excitement in Jeyne’s voice when she first told her about it. This would be good for them. They said goodnight and Sansa felt a bit better.

The feeling didn’t last long as Sansa’s thoughts were drawn back to the girl she was helplessly pining over.

*::::*

The next morning, Sansa hoped their morning routine would stay intact but was surprised to see the bathroom door to Dany’s room closed. The droplets of water on the shower walls and curtain left little doubt that Dany had gotten up early and taken a shower before she’d woken up. She hoped to find her in the kitchen at breakfast but her mom said Dany grabbed a plate and said she was going to study in her room today. It would take knocking on her door to force a conversation and Sansa wasn’t brave enough for that yet so she waited for dinner, but it was the same response.

Her mother clearly noticed how Dany ignored her at dinner and had a concerned expression on her face but Sansa avoided her. It hurt too much and she was afraid if she opened her mouth, she would completely break down.

Sansa often thought on Dany’s face when she asked why Sansa hadn’t been there. She’d been too caught up in her own turmoil at the time to see it but upon reflection, she knew it wasn’t the look of someone that had only been looking for a fling. It was the look of someone who had been hurt. And if she had been hurt, that meant Dany had cared for her after all.

Sadness settled heavily in her heart. Sansa berated herself for her cowardice. If she had been so concerned with having assurances of Dany’s feelings before admitting her own, she should’ve just asked. Why did she have to lie when Dany asked her a question that she knew she would have had to answer eventually?

The following morning, Sansa woke up to hear Dany’s shower. The girl was taking it at her normal time and Sansa wanted to see it as a good sign. She steeled herself. Her plan was to make small talk and hope Dany would respond. In the shower, Dany had nowhere to go and while Sansa felt guilty for having to corner her, she just couldn’t stand the cold shoulder anymore. But when Sansa tried to turn the doorknob to the bathroom door, it was locked, and her heart clenched in pain. Dany was truly shutting her out.

In a daze, Sansa threw on a robe and went downstairs for breakfast. If she didn’t go right then, she would’ve stayed in her room and cried all day and she couldn’t do that.

She walked into the kitchen and saw her mom preparing food for Bran and Rickon. Her dad, Robb, and Theon were already sitting at the table eating. Sansa poured herself a cup of coffee and sat next to Jon, who soon left, needing to get to his online office hours. She must’ve zoned out staring at her mug because she hadn’t realized Dany had come into the kitchen until she heard Robb talking to her.

“So finals are next week. Are you going to back to Volantis after the semester is done?” Robb asked.

“I was thinking that I might. The stay-at-home order won’t be lifted for another few weeks or so but my family can arrange for a private flight sooner if I asked,” replied Dany, eating her food at the kitchen island away from the rest of them. Sansa looked at her and felt the pit in her stomach grow. She didn’t want Dany to leave. Not until they worked this out.

“There’s no rush, Dany,” said Ned. “I know you have at least another year in your program so you have to be back here anyway after the summer break. You’re more than welcome to stay with us until they reopen the residence halls or you find an apartment or other accommodations.”

“Yeah, Dany, you don’t have to go,” said Robb. Theon nodded with him.

“I couldn’t impose on you all like that.”

“Nonsense,” chimed in Catelyn. “We have plenty of room. Even if Arya decides to move back in, we have two guest rooms on the second floor to choose from. Three if Theon leaves like he said he might.”

“I don’t know, Mrs. Stark…”

“You should stay,” said Sansa loudly. The others turned to her, surprised she had spoken. Dany’s expression hardened but at least those violet eyes were finally looking at her again.

“Schedules change, Sansa,” Dany said slowly, keeping eye contact with her. She was forcing her words to sound polite but Sansa heard the bite in them.

The others weren’t stupid, they could see the strain between them, but thankfully they returned to their plates or started up conversations amongst themselves.

Sansa relaxed her body and softened her features, not wanting the others to see her nervousness, although she knew her mother was watching her like a hawk. She ignored it as she stood up; she took her plate and mug to the sink and then she walked up behind Dany and whispered so only Dany could hear. “Please. You don’t have to go.”

Glancing down, Sansa saw Dany clench her fists and heard the soft gasp. Sansa’s stomach flipped as she moved closer to the other girl, wanting to hear her gasp again, and she wished the kitchen was empty so that they could talk freely.

Dany turned her face towards Sansa so that her lips were an inch from Sansa’s jawline, and whispered, “The reason I came here no longer seems viable.”

Sansa inhaled sharply, recognizing what Dany was saying, that she was the reason Dany agreed to stay with them in the first place. Not Jon. Her.

Before she could say anything, Dany walked out of the kitchen.

Catelyn came over to her and put a soft hand on the small of her back. The knot in her throat became excruciating and instead of seeking comfort in her mother, Sansa left the kitchen, too.

*::::*

Instead of studying, as she should have been doing, Sansa spent much of the day moping around the house. Dany again stayed in her room which left the library empty. In the past, the solitude of the library would comfort her. She could find peace in the silence and in the knowledge of generations past. Now Sansa found it stifling so she spent only the bare minimum of time necessary to get through the day’s work. She cleaned the laundry room and the third-floor guest bathroom, preparing them for her dad’s return from work. When she ran out of chores, she took a long walk in the wood but her thoughts were consumed with Dany and what she should’ve said in the library.

It had been her moment, her opportunity to clear the air and she had choked. What was the point of recognizing her feelings for Dany if she was too afraid to let Dany know she had them?

And now this new development, where Dany may actually leave the house right after finals, it made Sansa desperate to get Dany to talk to her again.

In the early evening, she returned from her walk and after finding out that Dany was in the basement on the treadmill, Sansa went up to her room to shower. She dressed in leggings, t-shirt, and oversized sweatshirt, and she waited for Dany to come up to take her own shower.

It was getting close to dinner time and Sansa was beginning to think she would have to find another opportunity to get Dany alone when she heard the woman enter her room. As usual, Dany called out she was taking a shower. Sansa saw her door close and heard the lock click. Her heart sank at Dany’s continued effort to keep her away but she would not be deterred.

Ten minutes later, the lock was turned. Sansa’s heart pounded as she worked up her nerve. She decided to wait until Dany went into her room to put on clothes. It would’ve been too distracting otherwise.

Sansa opened the door and walked into the bathroom. She was lucky that Dany left her own door open. Approaching quietly, she saw Dany in a pair of jeans and pulling on a black t-shirt, no bra underneath.

“Dany… I was serious earlier,” Sansa said softly. “You should stay. Who else is going to show me how to use a quill?”

She winced, scolding herself for not thinking more clearly about referencing that flirtation the other day in the library when it all went to shit. Prostrating herself in front of the woman would’ve been better, especially given the way Dany turned to look at her.

Dany looked angry. She looked more than angry.

“Really? That’s your approach?” Dany bit out scornfully.

“You’re not going to make it easy on me, are you?”

Dany scoffed. “Why should I? I’ve taken two chances with you and have been disappointed both times. It’s time to cut my losses.”

The words stung Sansa but she knew she deserved them.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry for all of it. I overreact, I freak out, I have the worst temper, and the thinnest skin when it comes to you. You don’t know what I was going through over the last year… I haven’t had a chance to say how you’ve helped me just by being there, by being so patient with me in special collections…”

Sansa swallowed, trying to ignore the sting in the back of her eyes as she kept going. “I’ve never felt this way before, Dany. I’m being one hundred percent honest when I say, I have no idea how to do this. My experience has always been on the passive side, just going through the motions with guys I cared little about. But this… what’s happening here… it’s so new and scary and I just don’t know how to chase you or be chased by you without stumbling. It’s not an excuse for lying but I was so afraid of telling you how I feel, I’ve never been with someone who I…”

Sansa cut herself off and leaned against the door jamb, closing her eyes. She hadn’t meant to jump to discussing her feelings so soon. But being afraid to discuss them is what led to her lie in the first place and she had to push forward. When she opened her eyes again, Dany was standing within arm’s reach right in front of her.

She was so beautiful. Some strands of her damp hair were dripping water on her shoulders, and Sansa had the urge to take a towel to Dany’s hair, to help dry it, and then brush it out. She wanted to take care of her, kiss her, and gods, why wasn’t Dany saying anything?

“Who you what?” Dany asked finally. Sansa shivered when Dany took a hand in hers. She still looked guarded but there was a softness in her eyes that gave Sansa the confidence to answer.

Sansa squeezed Dany’s hand and whispered, “Like. I like you. So much more than I can say.” She knew at that moment that she’d fallen for her. Friendship would never be enough. Sansa raised her free hand to gently cup Dany’s cheek. Her breath hitched when Dany’s eyes fluttered closed and she turned her cheek into Sansa’s hand.

This is where Sansa started to panic. She didn’t know how to be the one who initiated a first kiss. But here was Dany, her soft skin in the palm of her hand, leaning into her touch. Dany’s eyes opened and the corner of her mouth quirked up. Sansa very much wanted to taste that smirk.

She leaned forward and brushed her lips lightly against that corner of Dany’s mouth, and she smiled when Dany looked as if she was going to give her a kiss of her own.

Just before she did, Dany said, “We’re going to have to talk about it, Sansa. If you want this to progress, then you can’t pretend that day didn’t happen.”

“I know,” Sansa whispered, still looking at Dany’s lips. “We will. I promise. I just really want to kiss you right now.”

Dany gave a small smile and kissed her.

The first thing Sansa thought of was that she was wrong. The softness of Dany’s lips nowhere near matched what she had imagined. She almost forgot what to do and was glad that Dany took charge and pressed harder against her, her tongue swiping across Sansa’s upper lip. Sansa moaned in response and brought her hands to Dany’s hips, pulling her closer.

It was like her skin had been set on fire. It was more than kissing a woman for the first time. It was finally having Dany, the person who’d occupied her thoughts and dreams for the better part of a year. Holding her. Tasting her. Feeling Dany’s hands on her face and then gripping the backs of her shoulders. She had never felt this much want and passion for another person before. Her heart had never pounded this way, she had never panted like this into anyone’s mouth, desperate for air but desperate for Dany’s lips even more. Her hands had never clutched someone against her in burning need like this. Whereas the sounds she’d made before with ex’s had been forced, now Sansa’s moans and whimpers were escaping her mouth without thought, coaxed and drawn out of her as if they’d been waiting all this time for Dany to claim them.

And the sounds that Dany made only inflamed her desire to hear them again and again.

“We really do need to talk,” Dany murmured against her lips, before dragging kisses down her neck.

“Yes,” gasped Sansa just as Dany bit a little too hard on her neck. Her mind was a jumble. How could Dany form sentences when kissing felt like this? She was almost embarrassed by how aroused she was, at how she was pulling Dany’s hips against her to help relieve this unbearable pressure that was building within her.

A loud bang sounded from Sansa’s room, followed by Rickon’s voice, who entered said room without waiting for a reply, and she jerked away from Dany.

“What?” yelled Sansa, her voice hoarse. Looking around, she saw that she and Dany had somehow moved further into Dany’s room and she took a few steps towards the bathroom to stand in the doorway, trying to control her breathing while glaring at her brother who was still standing in her room.

“Dinner,” replied Rickon. He looked confused to see Sansa in Dany’s room but just shrugged his shoulders and left.

Sansa exhaled loudly, irritated by the interruption.

Dany laughed, coming up behind her. “Food will be good. I’m starving.”

“I am, too,” replied Sansa pointedly, turning to look at her, blushing now that she realized how that would be interpreted.

“Patience,” Dany said with a wink, going over to the closet and pulling out a flannel shirt to go over her black t-shirt. She quickly ran a brush through her hair.

Sansa grumbled about locking their bedroom doors from now on, running her hands over her face, and then her fingers through her hair.

“Sit next to me at dinner?” asked Dany.

She smiled and nodded, trying to push aside her wariness of how her jealousy was going to handle the boys’ attentions towards Dany now that they were… whatever they were. That was the other thing they needed to talk about. Sansa knew what she wanted and hoped that Dany wanted the same. And kissing. Definitely more kissing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, kissing!


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Sansa should have thought more about how she and Dany were going to act in front of the others during dinner. Dany seemed to have her own idea, though. They held hands as they went down the stairs but Dany let go when they reached the first floor. This annoyed Sansa more than it should have but then Dany gave her a warm look just before they walked into the dining room, which did help settle Sansa’s nerves. Maybe Dany thought Sansa wanted to pretend for now that nothing was between them.

Which was thoughtful.

Because she wasn’t out to everyone yet.

But going back to how they were before was the last thing Sansa wanted.

Jon was bringing the serving bowls of food to the table and the others were sitting down. Dany moved quickly to a chair and didn’t look at Sansa. She was giving her the option to sit somewhere else even though Sansa had already agreed they would sit together. Sansa pursed her lips and took the empty chair beside Dany just before Theon got to it.

Dany moved a hand to Sansa’s thigh under the table and squeezed gently. Sansa blushed and put her hand on top of Dany’s. Then she looked at her and smiled. She hoped with that look that Dany would understand she didn’t want to pretend to ignore her at dinner. They had kissed in Dany’s room. It happened and it was amazing. She was done with pretending. Sansa wanted tonight to be different.

And it was.

At first, she was quiet, mostly listening to the conversations going on around her. Gradually, through Dany’s gentle prompting and frequent touches, Sansa began to relax. She laughed openly at others’ jokes, she took the ribbing others gave her with good-natured smiles, and Dany touched and leaned toward her often to whisper endearments and things she liked about their encounter upstairs. Sansa loved it all. Dany only had to look at her lips for Sansa to feel the ghost of the kiss they shared earlier. She was definitely looking forward to going back to their rooms.

The boys didn’t really seem to notice that she and Dany had made up and then some, and if they did, they didn’t say anything nor did Sansa care.

Her parents noticed, though. Sansa had already seen her mom’s knowing smiles throughout the meal. Catelyn looked very pleased and Sansa smiled whenever their eyes met then ducked her head away. But towards the end of the dinner, she caught her dad looking at her with a quizzical expression. She knew he was trying to put it together and instead of turning away and pretending she didn’t see, Sansa whispered in Dany’s ear and they both looked at him while Sansa briefly leaned her head against Dany’s temple. Understanding came over Ned’s face. He shared a look with Catelyn, who smiled and nodded back at him. Sansa’s heart was pounding, not knowing what his reaction was going to be. When Ned quietly chuckled and nodded back at Sansa, tears came to her eyes. She stood up and quickly went round the table to hug him. Sansa heard Rickon joke with Bran about emotional sisters but she didn’t care. Her father had accepted her and the best man she would ever know deserved the tightest hug she could give him.

*::::*

Sansa and Dany were helping to clear the table after dinner. In the kitchen, she sent a quick text to Arya saying that she and Dany had kissed. The reply was immediate.

_< <and when are you two moving in together?_

She laughed and shook her head, tapping out a response. _> >Haha I’ll talk to you tomorrow._

“I have a lot to get done tonight and I’m just going to head up to my room,” Sansa said to Robb as he walked in with Dany carrying serving bowls and dishes. She glanced at Dany in order to get her to give a similar excuse.

“No way!” Jon said, holding a few empty glasses in his hands and taking them to the sink. “It’s puzzle challenge night. You promised.”

Shit. She had promised. The Stark family were big on jigsaw puzzles. Their mom had stocked up on at least a dozen new ones at the start of quarantine, which only added to the few dozen that lined the games shelves down in the basement. The Stark kids had worked on puzzles to varying degrees during quarantine but they had not had a proper puzzle challenge in a couple of months and she and Jon were usually in charge of picking the puzzles and judging.

“Puzzle challenge?” Dany asked, looking at Sansa.

“It’s not as serious as it sounds,” Sansa explained. “Basically, we divide up into teams and each team takes a puzzle, same number of pieces, and whichever team has the largest portion of their puzzle finished in the time allotted wins. And it’s not just putting together the most pieces, it has to look good with most of the main subject identifiable. It’s usually a whole family thing but Jon wanted it to be just us older kids tonight. A chance to talk shit, drink beer, and bond, all while showing off our puzzle skills.”

“Exactly. We’ll let Rickon and Bran have an hour or two of video games before they head up to bed and then we’ll start,” Jon chimed in.

“Great,” Dany said, a little crestfallen.

Dany hid it well but Sansa could see the disappointment and she tried not to smile. She walked over to her and whispered in her ear.

“We’ll still talk after the challenge. I promise.”

Dany bit her lip, grabbed her hand, and pulled her out of the kitchen and into the formal living room which was empty. She turned around and then lunged at Sansa, pressing her against the wall, kissing her as if she didn’t care that anyone could walk in and see them.

Whispering, Dany said, “I didn’t want to wait another hour to do that again. Dinner was torture.”

“For me, too,” breathed Sansa, her hands lightly squeezing Dany’s waist.

Sansa leaned forward and pressed her forehead against Dany’s.

“You’ll be on my team, right?” asked Dany.

“Of course,” Sansa answered. “After all, we do have a very good incentive to finish that stupid puzzle as quickly as possible.”

*::::*

Catelyn and Ned headed upstairs with Bran and Rickon, leaving the rest down in the basement for their challenge. They ended up dividing into two teams, Sansa and Dany versus Jon, Robb, and Theon. Jon wanted them to do one-thousand-piece puzzles but Sansa pushed for five hundred. This way they could all sit at one table and Jon was forced to reduce the allotted time to one hour. She also tried to choose a puzzle she’d worked on before but Jon insisted on two of the new ones their mother had purchased.

It became clear that the only ones trying to finish their puzzle was Sansa’s team. The boys just wanted to chat and joke around, and they half-heartedly worked on their picture of the ancient castle of the Red Keep. She and Dany, on the other hand, worked very efficiently on their picture of the dragon Vhagar with Queen Visenya riding her, quickly finding the corners and forming the edges. Dany occasionally broke in with bits of knowledge on her ancestor and other notable Targaryens, and Sansa enjoyed parrying with information about House Stark and its lineage to the First Men. She loved how Dany listened to her, attentive and ready with a quick reply, and she also enjoyed Dany’s foot gently rubbing up against her own under the table. Since they had come down from their rooms after showers, they’d only thrown on slippers and they’d both slipped them off when they got to work on the puzzle.

“Look at you two,” laughed Theon. He hated puzzles but tolerated it because he got to drink a lot of beer and tease everyone at the table. “I’ve never seen Sansa get the borders so quickly. She’s always fighting with whoever’s on her team that wants to start with the middle first.”

“I’m very good at edging,” Dany said cheekily, her foot going a bit more up Sansa’s calf.

“Oh ho!” Theon yelled. “Ten points to the ribald Lady Targaryen.”

Meanwhile Sansa was sipping her beer when she felt Dany’s foot go up her leg and began coughing as soon as Dany finished her double entendre. She quickly tried to recover her breath, hoping the boys didn’t notice her blushing when Dany winked at her.

Robb laughed, “I got that.”

Jon furrowed his brow. “I don’t get it.”

“And that’s why you know nothing!” teased Theon. “Seriously, didn’t Ygritte teach you anything?”

Jon chuckled and threw a puzzle piece at Theon instead of getting annoyed at Theon’s ribbing.

“She never tells me what stuff is called,” Jon offered, shrugging his shoulders. He smiled, thinking of something. Sansa thought he seemed in good spirits and wondered why.

“Wipe that stupid grin off your face, brother. I’m not used to seeing you look anything other than your dour self,” said Robb.

“Can’t help it. Ygritte and I are back together. We’d been talking every night for a week and before dinner today she told me we should give it another shot. She also said no more open relationship. We’re exclusive now.”

There were loud laughs and congratulations. Sansa smiled bigger than the rest, happy that Jon looked so content, and feeling relieved that Jon would have no reason to be mad at her over Dany now that he was officially off the market.

Jon turned to Theon. “How about you and Ros? I know you’ve been texting a lot.”

“That’s why I’m thinking of going back to my place. How am I supposed to woo the woman in the apartment next to mine if I’m all the way over here?”

“Hey, we had fun,” argued Robb. Theon laughed and threw three puzzle pieces at him.

“Yeah, but she’s actually funny and smart. Might be something there, I don’t know. And I definitely won’t know if I stay here. And you? I thought I saw you texting with Talisa earlier.”

“Robb, really?” asked Sansa excitedly.

Robb reddened slightly and took a long sip of his beer before nodding. “It’s too early to say what’s happening. We’re talking again. That’s all I know.”

But the look on his face told Sansa he was hopeful for where this talking might lead.

“And you, Dany? Any ex’s trying to worm their way back into your good graces?” asked Theon.

“I already told you guys, she doesn’t like to talk about her love life,” said Jon firmly.

“That’s okay, Jon,” Dany cut in. Then she let out an exaggerated sigh, garnering some laughs from the rest of the table. “In short, gods, I hope not. Part of the reason why I’m here instead of a university in Volantis or Braavos was to get away from a bad breakup. I mean, it’s a fantastic program but it becomes even more attractive after you break up with your cheating girlfriend and you’re forced to change your number and get out of town when she won’t leave you alone.”

There was a shocked silence amongst the boys. Sansa was also surprised to see the look on Jon’s face. He hadn’t known Dany liked women either.

“Wait… so…” Robb crinkled his brows, “Only girlfriends, or both girlfriends and boyfriends, or…?”

Dany smirked. “Only girlfriends.”

Sansa blinked a few times at that. She thought Dany dated men, too. Thankfully Theon brought up the thing Sansa wanted to ask.

“But you went out with Jon,” Theon said.

“Yeah,” Robb said, looking at Jon incredulously. “You said you two went out. You told us almost two months ago, right?”

“I’m sorry, what? We never went out,” said Dany harshly, her eyebrows raised. Her expression was one of confusion and Sansa’s heart started beating wildly.

“I… just said… I mean, we did have coffee together, right?” Jon stammered.

He looked like a deer caught in the headlights, obviously stunned at Dany’s revelation about her sexuality but there was also something else.

Something that turned Sansa’s heart into a two-ton anvil which sank straight to her stomach. _No… he didn’t…_

“That was just coffee. As friends. I told you it was nothing more.”

“Jon implied a hell of a lot more than that,” Theon said under his breath with a little too much glee at the situation that was unfolding. Sansa glared at Theon and then narrowed her eyes as she stared at Jon.

“I didn’t say anything of the sort,” asserted Jon.

“Jon!” exclaimed Sansa loudly, her hands gripping the table, shaking with fury. Dany hadn’t lied. Nothing happened between them. Nothing. And Sansa had made a huge mistake. “I overheard you guys. You know that’s how it was taken.”

“I don’t believe this,” muttered Dany, looking around at them all in disgust.

“I’m sorry, Dany. It was just guy talk.”

“Stop. I don’t want to hear any more of how you talk about your friends,” Dany bit out, standing up. And then she directed her anger at Sansa. “This is why you stood me up, isn’t it? Almost two months ago? You chose to believe his boasts instead of coming to me.”

“Dany…” Sansa began, feeling helpless. She wanted to say that they should go upstairs to talk, that this was what Sansa was going to bring up anyway. They would’ve compared notes and figured out Jon’s lie on their own. But Dany didn’t give her the chance to speak. She just shook her head and stormed away, going up the stairs.

Sansa sat for a couple of minutes, staring at her hands on the table. She could feel the boys’ eyes on her, could hear the gears turning in their heads. Sansa looked up and saw Robb’s more introspective look, no doubt remembering Dany’s joke about the two of them during breakfast that one time and Sansa’s own attempt that time at dinner to link the two of them in order to challenge his disbelief in them being a couple.

“Well, damn,” said Theon finally, thumping the table hard with his hand. “Sansa gets the girl just by scowling at her the whole time? Do you think that’ll work with Ros?”

“Shut up, Theon,” snapped Robb. He turned to Sansa. “So you and her? That’s what all that tension was about?”

She nodded slowly before needing to wipe the tears from her eyes.

“Hey,” Robb said gently, placing a hand on hers. “She’ll cool off. Then you two can talk.”

Sansa lifted her eyes and saw how he was looking at her. There was understanding and encouragement. She turned to Jon who guiltily looked away.

“Guy talk like that hurts people. Especially lies,” Sansa said quietly through clenched teeth. She looked around at all three of them because it wasn’t just Jon. Robb and Theon had encouraged him that night. At least they looked properly chastised.

“They were giving me a hard time about not playing the field more, for not taking advantage of Ygritte’s open relationship rules, I don’t know, it seemed harmless…” Jon sighed. “I’m sorry. You’re right, it was wrong.”

Sansa was furious at her brother and she was glad he stopped with his explanation and acknowledged his fuck-up. Now she needed to acknowledge hers. She sighed and stood up. The basement was not where she should be. Sansa just hoped that Dany would listen.

Suddenly a voice called down from the top of the stairs and Sansa’s heart stopped.

“Hey, Sans? I know you don’t have experience chasing after girls but just so you know, this is where you’re supposed to run after me.”

Dany didn’t sound angry. She sounded playful. Teasing.

Sansa’s eyes widened and her mouth fell open as she looked at her brothers and Theon. Jon chuckled and whispered at her to go. She smiled, feeling nervous, excited, and hopeful, and she raced up the stairs, taking them two at a time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a fun chapter to write. I always like scenes where multiple characters interact with each other. And I thought it would be the perfect scene for the revelation about Jon's lie to come out.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Dany rushed out of the basement and looked around the kitchen. She let out a frustrated breath, decided she needed fresh air and went outside to look at the night sky. It was cold and she wasn’t wearing a jacket but at least she had on a flannel. _Fucking North_ , she thought.

_Fucking Sansa._

She wanted to yell and kick something but just kept taking deep breaths. After a minute, she felt a bit calmer, and she forced herself to think about Sansa’s reaction in the basement. Sansa looked shocked and angry at Jon. Guilty, too. Which meant she at least recognized her mistake.

 _Who does that, though?_ Dany’s mind argued. _Who stands someone up instead of confronting them on a contradiction? A perceived lie?_

She kept asking herself this over the next couple of minutes until she remembered what Sansa had said upstairs before dinner. That she didn’t have experience being with someone she cared about. Dany also remembered what she’d learned from that phone call Sansa had with her sister – that Sansa had just started coming out to her family, that Dany was the reason Sansa realized she was attracted to women. An inexperienced person, one who didn’t trust easily, might find it easier to run away than to confront the issue.

_No wonder she’d been so angry whenever she saw me. She’d been heartbroken._

“Fuck,” Dany said through gritted teeth. That didn’t excuse what Sansa did but Dany wasn’t as mad as she was now that she had a better idea about why Sansa had reacted that way.

_And if I had confronted her right away instead of embarking on my campaign to torture her, we might’ve figured this out sooner._

Dany turned around and walked back into the house. It had only been a few minutes and she listened for anyone calling for her but heard nothing. Walking closer to the basement stairway, she could hear the others. Sansa was still down there.

They needed to talk and Sansa promised that they would. This was what Sansa was going to tell her tonight, the thing she was afraid to admit the other day in the Stark library.

She smiled to herself, remembering their kiss upstairs. The moans the redhead had made, how her body felt against hers. The way she would tremble every time Dany’s teeth had grazed her lips. Sansa liked her. Really liked her. And Dany didn’t want to throw that away. Not when they had just started. Not over a misunderstanding.

Because she really liked her, too.

Dany wished she could see the look on Sansa’s face when the girl heard what she was about to say. She did so love to tease her and her expressions were the best part.

Smirking, Dany called down, “Hey, Sans? I know you don’t have experience chasing after girls but just so you know, this is where you’re supposed to run after me.”

*::::*

Sansa reached the top of the stairs and looked around the kitchen but didn’t see Dany. She made her way to the entry hall and paused, listening. A door closed in the distance with a familiar squeak and Sansa smiled.

Trying to calm herself with steady breaths, Sansa walked to the library door and opened it. Dany was inside, sitting on the long table where they usually did their work, her hands gripping the edge of the table on either side of her legs. She had only turned on one lamp but Sansa didn’t feel the need to turn on any other lights. The dimness in the room reminded her of candlelight. Sansa hoped she would get a chance to see Dany in true candlelight in the near future, and wondered what flirtation Dany could come up with about candles versus electric lighting.

They stared at each other while Sansa tried to read her mood. Amused but underneath there was still a current of anger.

“I’m an idiot. I’m sorry,” whispered Sansa.

Dany nodded and looked down. “You should’ve come to me. We’ve wasted all this time because you thought I lied.”

“You’re right. But I was afraid. I was afraid you didn’t like me as much as I liked you. And I told myself that you were off limits as someone who I thought my brother had dated and still wanted to date. I can only say that it crushed me more than I thought anything or anyone could ever crush me. I’ve had boyfriends, a couple of whom I was very close to and had fun with, and I’ve been hurt and toyed with, too, but I’d never felt completely out of control in those relationships, my heart was always mine.”

“And it wasn’t with me?”

“Dany…” Sansa breathed, then walked over until she stood in front of her. She wanted to touch her, she wanted to pull Dany into her arms and kiss her, but she had to lay it all out there first.

“My heart hasn’t been mine since the first time I saw you on that bench in the quad. You didn’t see me that day, you didn’t know, but I’ve been yours ever since.”

Dany’s eyes softened and her lips stretched into a wide smile. Sansa exhaled in relief.

“I have to admit something, too,” Dany said, reaching for Sansa’s hands and pulling her close.

“What?” asked Sansa, her heart starting to race as she found herself standing between Dany’s knees.

“I kind of overheard a part of your conversation with Arya from about a week ago or so.”

Her eyes widened, trying to figure out which phone call it had been.

“The one where I came out to her?” asked Sansa, biting her lip.

Dany nodded and then continued.

“I swear I didn’t plan it, though I did stand there a few moments longer than I should have when I realized what I was hearing. But I only heard the part of you saying you came out to your mother and then some teasing from your sister about me and I walked away.” Dany blew out a breath and squeezed her hands. “I wish you had said something back in special collections about being new to dating women. I would’ve handled everything better.”

“I think it was perfect. I meant what I said earlier in your room. You were slow and patient. It gave me time to figure some stuff out and build confidence, and I definitely wanted to go out with you when you asked. I was nervous but ready.”

Dany chuckled. “Silly Jon. I only wanted to hear about you, what you were like, who you dated. That was my whole reason for going to the coffeehouse with him. I had to spend time listening to stories about him and your other siblings but I only really cared about you.”

Sansa smiled, letting go of Dany’s hands and moving them down to her hips and stepping forward until she could feel Dany’s inner thighs on either side of her.

“Very silly Jon. And silly me, too.”

“I’m sorry if I outed you down there when I yelled at you. I do regret that. I was just so angry,” whispered Dany, wrapping her arms around Sansa’s neck.

Sansa bent down to nuzzle her nose in Dany’s neck and replied in a low voice, “It’s okay. I was planning on telling them soon anyway.”

“Sansa?” Dany murmured as she pressed soft kisses along Sansa’s neck.

“Hmm…” Sansa hummed in response, her eyes closed and her hands gripped Dany’s hips a bit tighter as Dany’s kisses turned to nibbles and small bites.

“I’ve fallen for you, too.”

Sansa’s eyes flew open and she pulled her head back, looking into Dany’s twinkling eyes. They were full of hope and affection, and also a small hint of fear which Sansa completely understood. Dany didn’t want to get hurt again either. Before she knew it, Dany’s hands pulled her head down until their lips crashed together.

This kiss was better than the first one because now Sansa knew Dany felt the same way and she had a better idea of how her body was going to react.

She may have had the advantage of towering over a sitting Dany but Sansa quickly melted against the onslaught of Dany’s lips, her tongue, her hands drifting down to her ass and pulling her flush against Dany’s warmth. Sansa was wearing leggings so she could easily feel the heat of Dany’s hands.

“You’re good at this,” sighed Sansa.

Dany chuckled and pulled Sansa into an even deeper kiss while at the same time pushing her back and standing up so that she could switch their positions. Sansa was now sitting on the table and felt strong hands grip her thighs, spreading them so that Sansa could surround her with her own warmth. The front seam of Dany’s jeans pressed against her and she gasped, wanting more.

Sansa grabbed the front of Dany’s flannel shirt and pulled it open, pushing it down off Dany’s arms.

“Here?” Dany asked, her voice sounding surprised but also full of need.

Instead of speaking, Sansa’s hands slipped under Dany’s t-shirt, feeling the smooth expanse of her back. Dany responded by doing the same to her and Sansa groaned in response.

Sansa felt one of Dany’s hands trail to her stomach and dip inside the waistband of her leggings. She realized that having a better idea of how her body would react to Dany’s touch and kisses did not mean she was used to the electricity surging through her right now. Her heart was pounding and she was breathing hard, trying to push away her nervousness and to focus on how it felt. Feeling Dany’s fingers go inside the band of her underwear made her gasp. _This was really happening. Sex with Dany. Am I ready? What if it’s too soon?_ She moaned loudly as Dany’s fingers slid across her wetness, exploring. _Gods, how can this feel so good? Am I going to be able to make Dany feel this good?_

Even though it did feel good, Sansa closed her eyes and braced herself when Dany got close to pushing inside. It was a reflexive action and she tried to relax and make the apprehension disappear. But that only made her get further lost in her head and away from this moment with Dany.

Dany must have noticed how she stiffened because she moved her fingers away so that they rested just inside the waistband over her hip.

“Sansa…” Dany breathed into her neck, panting hard. “There is no such thing as a ‘point of no return’. We can stop at any time. I only want to do what you’re completely comfortable with.”

The tremor in Dany’s voice said she didn’t want to stop but Sansa appreciated her restraint. And the truth of it was Sansa was not completely sure. Her body felt like it was on fire; she needed Dany, she wanted her. The arousal pulsing between her legs demanded Dany stop with the teasing and just touch her already. But a part of her also wondered if they should talk more. She was about to speak when there was a loud knock on the door.

Dany broke away completely from Sansa and stepped back. She suddenly felt cold and missed having Dany’s hands on her.

“Sansa?” came a muffled voice through the door.

“Shit,” whispered Sansa, standing up. It was her mother. Thankfully the door didn’t open. “Yeah, Mom?”

Sansa cringed. Her voice sounded shaky. _Way to sell it, Sansa._

“Remind Dany of the rule, please. Goodnight, loves.”

Sansa’s eyes widened, feeling mortified that her mom knew exactly what they had been doing.

She looked at Dany and they giggled, coming together in a hug, and then they laughed some more.

“Rule?” asked Dany with a breathless laugh.

“Jon didn’t tell you?”

“I think we can both say with certainty that Jon is not the forthcoming sort.”

Sansa laughed nervously and then blushed, hoping Dany couldn’t tell in the low light. She didn’t know why she was flustered all of a sudden. Hadn’t she just tried to initiate sex with Dany a minute ago?

“It’s my parents’ sex rule for us over-eighteen kids. Only in our bedroom, we can christen all the rooms of our own house, not theirs.”

“Wow,” Dany replied, raising an eyebrow and smiling. “Our own house, huh? You do move quickly.”

“Dany.”

“Well, maybe not that quickly. You did spend almost a year crushing on me before saying you liked me.”

“Hey!”

“It’s a good thing our bedrooms are linked by that bathroom, though.”

Sansa blinked. Dany was skittering across subjects faster than she could keep up with. “How so?”

“No one can see us going into each other’s rooms,” Dany replied in low voice.

Sansa felt her eyes glaze over as she thought of all the things they could do in the privacy of their practically joined bedrooms. Dany laughed at her and gave her a quick peck on the lips. “By the way, your parents are really great. I like how they respect your autonomy as sexually active adults and expect a similar respect when it comes to how you behave in their home.”

“It’s a rule that hasn’t been tested all that much, to be honest. There has been the occasional sleepover of a significant other but I’m sure my parents never imagined a situation like ours, this extended lockdown and everything.”

“Your mom didn’t sound all that worried. And I promise to be _mostly_ good with their rule. Kissing, well, I just won’t be able to help myself with that. Your lips are very kissable.”

Sansa blushed as Dany leaned up to kiss her.

“It’s a shame, though,” Dany whispered.

“What is?”

“I’ve long had a very specific fantasy of having my way with you in the university library and your library here would’ve made a very good stand-in for that.”

Sansa swallowed hard as Dany winked at her and then pulled her to the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to get this up sooner but things have gotten busy around here again. And I couldn't stop outlining/inserting some scenes I wanted to see so this story has stretched just a bit longer. I'm just about positive 17 will be the last chapter but as always, that's subject to change.
> 
> Thanks for sticking with this story. I appreciate all of you and hope you're still staying safe out there.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

They held hands as they walked up the stairs, not encountering anyone, and exchanging shy glances and smiles. Dany prepared herself to kiss and part at Sansa’s door but was pleasantly surprised when Sansa pulled her further down the hall to her own door. Sansa kissed her again, this time with such hunger that Dany wasn’t ready for it to end. She opened the door and they stumbled in. Sansa quickly removed her sweatshirt locking lips with her again, and they kissed all the way to the bed. Dany laid her down and nibbled down her neck and then over her chest. Her hands slid underneath Sansa’s t-shirt, staying on the sides of her abdomen.

“You didn’t respond earlier. I need to know if you’re okay with this,” whispered Dany.

“I’ve had sex before,” said Sansa. Her voice was impatient and indignant but Dany could also detect a hint of false bravado.

Dany raised her head to look Sansa in the eyes and gave her a patient smile. It was one of those moments where she could easily read what Sansa was thinking. She could see the nervousness, the small amount of anxiety. Dany imagined she was worried about pleasing her. She remembered going through the same thing and wanted Sansa to feel safe to discuss it with her. Instead of stating the obvious, that Sansa had never slept with a woman before, or that having had sex before did not mean it was automatically expected of her to do so now, remarks that might make Sansa feel insecure or feel that she was belittling her experience, Dany wanted to reach her with common ground which in a roundabout way would address these things she needed Sansa to recognize.

“It feels different, though, doesn’t it? Yeah, things tend to be exciting and different when getting to know a new sexual partner. But you’ve said you’ve never cared like this before, and that kind of emotion coupled with intense attraction, it can heighten everything and maybe make you rush into something you haven’t thought through.”

Sansa’s lips parted and she brought a hand to Dany’s cheek. The tenderness and warmth she saw in Sansa’s eyes, the trust, Dany swore to herself she would move mountains to see that look every day.

“I take it you speak from experience?”

“I identify as lesbian but before I knew that about myself, I dated boys. It never felt right. And then a truth or dare game at a party my freshman year in undergrad changed everything,” Dany said, and then lightly snorted. “Gods, saying it like that makes it sound so cliché, doesn’t it?”

Sansa smiled. “It’s not any more cliché than unexpectedly getting hit with that knowledge at the sight of a pretty girl on campus. What happened?”

Dany gave her a quick kiss for the compliment and then moved off Sansa until she was lying beside her.

“My roommate that year was unbelievably attractive and kind; I loved hanging out with her and she took me under her wing. She got me to come out of my shell of shyness and low self-confidence. I realized I had a crush on her and I began to wonder if the reason I didn’t like boys that much was because I liked girls. At the party, she was dared to kiss me and instead of a quick peck, she full on kissed me. It was like a thunderbolt. All of these wonderful, amazing feelings and sensations came over me. And it confirmed to me without a doubt that I liked women. She was straight so it didn’t go farther than that but I was impatient to find someone to explore these feelings with. Not long after that I met a girl, a senior, and I liked her, she liked me. She was very experienced, though not as patient as she could’ve been; it wasn’t terrible by any means but in hindsight I wish I hadn’t let that first flush of real desire hurry something I would’ve rather taken my time with. It ended up shaping how I’ve interacted with girls ever since. I’ve had serious and I’ve had casual but I always try to be sensitive to their limits. So, since you are new at this, I want you to know it’s okay if you want to slow down.”

Sansa took Dany’s hand in her and squeezed. Her eyes showed curiosity but also hesitance. Dany wondered what she wanted to know.

“How did your family take it when you came out to them?” Sansa asked.

“Not as accepting as yours, I’m afraid. I would say it’s more like a begrudged tolerance. Yet another reason why I came all the way over here for grad school,” Dany replied with a frown. “My mother is wonderful but very much passive to the whims and rages of my father. My oldest brother is much older than me and has his own family; he can’t be bothered to do anything to support me. And my other brother is too weak-willed to go against our father. So, in short, I haven’t been disowned or anything, they’re still helping me with tuition and all that, but let’s just say my father is very unhappy in his belief that I am unable to further the family’s status with a beneficial marriage to the son of a prominent house.”

Sansa bit her lip and said, “I’m sorry. Selfish me is glad you’re here, though. And if it isn’t too boastful to say, House Stark is nothing to laugh at. Ancient entanglements between our houses notwithstanding, I’d say you still have the potential for a good match here.”

Dany wiped the frown off her face and smirked. “I suppose that’s true.”

She saw how Sansa was relieved she hadn’t brought down the mood too much with her question about Dany’s family and Dany squeezed her hand in reassurance. She didn’t want Sansa to be afraid to ask her anything.

“As for the other thing, about slowing down, we have sort of skipped the usual courting, haven’t we?”

“Well, if you hadn’t stood me up…”

Sansa leaned in to kiss her. “I know. And you’re right. These feelings are strong, I did feel a bit overwhelmed earlier. And… intimidated by your experience and my inexperience with women. I mean, I know the mechanics, I know how I work and I should be able to figure it out, right? It’s just going at it from a different angle? Gods, I should shut up, I’m embarrassing myself… I should’ve spent these last several months reading up on it or talking to Arya. Not that she would help, she’d just make fun of me. Talking about it right now is helping, though.”

Dany resisted the urge to laugh at Sansa’s rambling which had devolved into muttering to herself by the end of it. At Sansa’s words about the mechanics and angles, her mind had also conjured the memory of touching her down in the library and she bit the inside of her cheek to clear her mind; the last thing Dany needed was another wave of desire while trying to reassure the girl in front of her. She moved her hand up from Sansa’s hand to grip her forearm, bringing Sansa’s attention back to her. The redhead huffed and gave a resigned shrug.

“I’m glad talking helps. I want you to always feel like you can talk to me. About my family, about things you want to try in bed, whatever. And I’m serious about going at your pace. I mean, I want you. Gods, how I want you,” said Dany as she trailed a finger up Sansa’s arm, then cupping her cheek. “I know we got close in the library but we can chalk it up to getting caught up in the moment. We just kissed for the first time today, _and_ resolved a huge misunderstanding; I think it’d be good to let that settle for a bit. And who knows, maybe we’ll decide tomorrow is the right time for us, or the next day or the day after that. I’m just glad to be here with you. You’re not the only one who has wanted this for months on end.”

Her fingers caressed Sansa’s face, marveling at her softness and beauty, thankful that they were finally going to make this happen.

“There was no one else during the year?” Sansa asked in a small voice.

“I’ve only had eyes for you from the moment you walked into special collections,” Dany replied honestly.

“I like this,” Sansa whispered before pulling Dany in for a kiss and then moving over her until she was on top and straddling her.

“What do you mean?” asked Dany, feeling exposed under Sansa’s piercing gaze.

“I’d gotten used to the Dany that only wanted to provoke me. I pushed away the memory of the caring, considerate girl I’d been trying to get to know in the library but here you are again… I’ve missed you,” Sansa replied softly, a finger lightly tracing Dany’s jawline then brushing over her lips. Her hand pulled away and she said, “I think you’re right. We should wait at least one night. And I would still like to go on that date.”

Dany grinned. “Dining in restaurants is still not allowed.”

“I’ll think of something,” said Sansa, and the smile that came over her face made Dany’s heart sing.

This was exactly how she wanted Sansa. Relaxed and confident. Nervousness was still to be expected in the beginning. Hells, even she felt nervous about pleasing Sansa, about taking care of her and making their experiences together special and tender. She was also nervous about how the girl made her feel with just a look. But talking with each other, being open about how they felt, these were good signs for their relationship.

“We can still make out, right?” Dany asked.

“I’d be frustrated if we didn’t.”

“Good,” Dany replied then leaned up to give Sansa a soft, lingering kiss. “Okay, let’s get ready for bed.”

Sansa moved off of her so Dany could get out of the bed.

Smirking at Sansa, Dany pushed down her jeans and enjoyed how the redhead watched her. Then she pulled on some pajama pants. Instead of showing Sansa more, however, Dany turned around to take off her shirt and pull on a sleep tank top.

“She was an idiot.”

“Who?” Dany asked, turning around.

“The woman who cheated on you. How could anyone? You’re incredible.”

“Sweet talker,” Dany teased. “I might let you cop a feel tonight if you keep talking like that.”

Sansa giggled and got out of the bed, saying she needed to change and went to her room. Dany went into the bathroom and did her nighttime routine. She was soon joined by Sansa, who was wearing a loose t-shirt and pajama pants, and Dany felt a wave of contentment. She’d never lived with a girlfriend before, never feeling the urge to do so. But it was easy to imagine a future with Sansa where they had their own place, where they could take advantage of every surface without worrying about Catelyn interrupting them. She laughed.

“What?” Sansa asked, toothbrush in her mouth.

“Nothing,” Dany replied, drying her face with a towel. “Just happy.”

Sansa blushed and turned to spit in her sink.

“Can I also say I’m so glad your brothers know now? They were getting ridiculous.”

A scowl came over Sansa’s face in response. “I’m surprised you put up with their flirtation for so long. Or that you never told Jon. They would’ve stopped had they known.”

Dany rolled her eyes and smiled. “Theon, too?”

“Okay, maybe not him.”

They both laughed.

“As for Jon, I was going to tell him after you and I had that date. But then you know how that turned out,” said Dany. Then she curled her lips into a devious smile. “And when I came here, I liked how it made you jealous.”

“I wasn’t jealous,” argued Sansa.

“Liar,” teased Dany with a smirk.

Sansa scoffed but didn’t argue again. “Fine. I was insanely jealous.”

Dany laughed and squeezed Sansa’s arm then left the bathroom to give the girl privacy to finish up the rest of her routine. She sat on the bed and turned off the lights except for the one on her nightstand. She wondered what kind of goodnight they would give each other. Would Sansa come back in or call for her?

Another couple of minutes went by and then Sansa called to her from her bedroom.

Smiling, Dany turned off the light and walked the short distance through the bathroom and into Sansa’s room. She was in her bed and scooted over, making room for Dany. Sansa had a double size bed, just like her, which meant there was room to share but they would still be close.

She bit her lip, wondering if this was a good idea but decided not to overthink it and got in the bed.

 _Just for a little while then I’ll go back to my room_ , she told herself.

After settling under the blankets, Sansa turned off the lamp and they lay on their sides facing each other, enjoying the peace between them. It was dark but they could still see each other because of the moonlight coming in through the windows.

“Dany, I feel stupid for asking but I’m obviously terrible at communicating and I just need to know if we’re on the same page. We are exclusively together, right? You’re my girlfriend?”

“That’s the page I’m on,” Dany whispered.

She saw Sansa try to hold back her smile but the joy on her face couldn’t be contained.

“Good. This page is good. Lots of words. Even realistic illustrations.”

Dany grinned. “You’re adorable.”

Her eyes widened when Sansa wrapped a strong arm around her waist and pulled her against her.

“Then, Daenerys Targaryen, you should kiss your adorable girlfriend goodnight.”

*::::*

Sansa opened her eyes the next morning to find her face buried in silvery blonde hair. Then she felt the warm body she was embracing. They were spooning. Her mind flashed to the kissing they’d done just before they fell asleep. It had been heated but hands stayed outside of their pajamas and away from more sensitive areas. She’d loved it. And she loved that Dany could kiss for that long without asking her to take it further. Sansa nuzzled into Dany’s hair, inhaling her girlfriend’s scent.

_My girlfriend._

Her heart beat happily and she grinned when she felt Dany snuggle back against her. Sansa held her even tighter.

“Good morning,” came the warm sound of Dany’s voice. She sounded wide awake, like she’d been like that for a while, which made Sansa smile even more at the thought that Dany hadn’t tried to move away from her when she’d woken up.

“Good morning,” answered Sansa, kissing the back of Dany’s head. “You know, I’ve never really liked spooning but I guess all I needed to do was share a bed with a hot girlfriend. Also, being the big spoon is pretty awesome.”

“Careful. This hot girlfriend likes mornings.”

“Are you saying that’s your go-to time?” Sansa asked biting her lip and smiling. Waking up with Dany, talking and teasing, she could really get used to this.

Dany chuckled and turned around to face Sansa. Sansa’s heart skipped a beat at her lip bite. It wasn’t fair. How did Dany look this gorgeous in the morning?

“I prefer nights but wake-up calls in the morning can be fun on a good day, too,” Dany replied. “That reminds me. I’m pretty sure I had a good read on your face but verbal confirmation is always a good thing… did I really interrupt your _stress relief_ that night?”

_Oh gods._

Sansa blushed, feeling hot and flustered. But she could tell by that damned smirk this response is what Dany wanted. Sansa thought of a comeback that would put Dany off-balance.

She slowly nodded and whispered, “Yes.” And even more boldly, she asked, “Were you masturbating that night as well?”

Dany’s mouth opened in surprise at Sansa’s explicit question. Sansa felt victorious at the sight of the pink blush growing on Dany’s cheeks. Then Dany licked her lower lip and shook her head. “I got ready for bed and then waited for you. I thought about it but wanted to be sure I heard you return to your room.”

“You waited for me? How did you know what I would do?”

“I didn’t know for sure. That night at dinner, didn’t you feel it? You started responding to me… you turned the teasing against me, like right now… It was hot. You were so hot.”

Her voice took on a huskiness as she spoke that made Sansa’s stomach clench. Before Sansa knew it, her girlfriend was over her and kissing her with an impressive amount of passion.

“You have no idea how much I wanted to kiss you that night. How I’ve wanted to kiss you every time I made you blush,” Dany murmured into her neck, trailing kisses down her chest, and back up again.

They made out for a long while. Sansa felt brave enough to lightly brush up against the bottom of one of Dany’s breasts and she was breathless at the pleased moan Dany gave in response.

Eventually, their kisses slowed down and they felt it was time to get started with the day. Sansa’s first final exam was the next day at eight in the morning for her Topics in Ancient Westerosi History–Post-Aegon’s Conquest course and she wanted to get in some more reading.

Dany got out of the bed and said, “Since we’re already late for breakfast, let’s just miss it altogether. I’d rather avoid the hard time Robb and Theon likely want to give us about last night and our new relationship status. We can take a shower, grab toast and coffee, and head to the library.”

“Shower together?” squeaked out Sansa, unable to breathe suddenly.

Her girlfriend chuckled and said, “We’ve already seen each other naked, wet, and dripping. Many times, in fact.”

Naked. Wet. Dripping. Sansa’s imagination ran wild.

At Sansa’s reddened face, Dany laughed. “You really are too easy to rile up, you know that, right?”

Sansa threw a pillow at Dany and glared at her as Dany laughed again and practically skipped into the bathroom. She lay back down on the bed and blew out a breath. The sound of the shower hit her ears and Sansa’s stomach flipped at the image of a naked Dany waiting for her. Sansa wasn’t really ready for that kind of encounter but the thought of it was titillating. She smiled to herself. One of these days she would surprise Dany by joining her. The look on her face would be priceless.

At the beginning of quarantine, Dany’s efforts to fluster her only enraged her. Now being flustered didn’t seem so bad. She also liked seeing how Dany was affected when she turned it around on her.

Quarantine still sucked but it all just got a bit more tolerable.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So just fluff, fun, and relationship development from here on out because I need an escape. :)


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

They didn’t see anybody when they went to make their coffee and toast in the kitchen. Sansa figured her mom sent Rickon and Bran outside for some fresh air, like she usually did so the boys could get a break before they had to go back to their schoolwork. She was glad not to see her mom, still feeling embarrassed at being caught like that the previous night.

In the library, they quickly settled in. But Sansa found she couldn’t concentrate. The previous day’s events kept flashing through her mind. Her first kiss with Dany, finding out about Jon’s lie, nearly having sex in the library, waking up to Dany in her arms. She couldn’t stop staring at Dany and remembering how her hair smelled so she decided to move away from the table and into a leather armchair, hoping some distance would help.

“It’s not fair. You only have one exam and I have three,” complained Sansa, forcing thoughts of school into her head to replace the other, more lustful ones she was having. “I also want to file a complaint about the school sticking with letter grades instead of moving to pass/fail.”

“You’re acing your classes, babe; you’ll be happy with those glowing marks when you get them. As for the rest, those are the benefits of grad school. Most of my classes were seminars anyway and term papers were enough for those profs. But that one final will be tedious. A bunch of short-essays in a four-hour window. I’ll probably lock you out of the library while I’m taking it.”

Sansa felt butterflies at Dany’s term of endearment. A relationship. She was so glad Dany accepted Jon’s invite to stay with them.

“Are you happy with your program?” Sansa asked, suddenly feeling a need to think about the future and their careers and whether those goals aligned. Dany had spoken of a career restoring and preserving ancient documents on their walk through the woods. Her master’s degree only required one more year, with another possible year doing an internship at the library, and then she would be gone. The thought made Sansa’s heart ache.

“Yeah, it’s really good. So good, in fact, I’ve been thinking about trying to get into the doctoral program after finishing the master’s. What do you think? I could be Dr. Targaryen, put my hair up in a tight bun, wear a tweed jacket with leather patches on the elbows, and smoke a pipe.”

“Sexy,” replied Sansa. She had meant to sound sarcastic, but in picturing Dany, she had the image of stripping her of said tweed jacket and undoing the severe bun on her head, feeling soft hair wrapping around her fingers. She’d definitely lose the smelly pipe, though.

As for future goals, this was good news. Since Sansa wanted to get her doctorate in history and wanted to stay at the same university, Dany becoming a doctoral student here meant she would be sticking around for several more years, which boded well for their relationship until it was time to look for jobs. A joint search would be challenging. But she was getting ahead of herself. Sansa couldn’t help it, though. It was so easy picturing a life with Dany. She wanted it. It scared her how much she wanted it.

She must have gotten lost in thought because she didn’t notice Dany in front of her until she felt the book and papers on her lap being taken away. Sansa looked up and Dany put her hands on each of the chair’s arms and leaned down to kiss her. The kiss deepened quickly and Sansa grabbed her hips, pulling her close until Dany settled into straddling her.

Before Dany could start anything more, Sansa wrapped her arms around Dany and hugged her close, tucking her face into Dany’s neck. She felt Dany sink into her.

“I should be giving you more space but I can’t help it,” whispered Dany, and Sansa could feel her trembling against her. “I’ve wanted to touch you for so long, right now it all feels like a dream and I just need to be near you...”

“I know, I feel the same way,” interrupted Sansa, pressing gentle kisses against Dany’s neck, wanting to reassure her, feeling guilty at her role in Dany’s insecurity about them. Her hands moved across Dany’s back and upwards towards her neck. Dany pulled her head back and Sansa gently caressed her face, in awe of what she saw. This woman. This intelligent, confident, gorgeous girl, who could get under her skin like no other, was vulnerable just like her. She needed Sansa just like she needed her. Sansa never wanted to let her down again. She wanted to hold her and take care of her, and it was a novel feeling, this desire to protect and nurture. Sansa felt a pang in her heart that slowly grew into a tremendous swell. It filled her to the brim and Sansa opened her mouth, wanting to say the words she knew it was too soon to say. Her heart argued that she and Dany had already said things which told the other they each felt an attachment that ran deeper than infatuation. But her mind reminded her that they’d just kissed for the first time less than twenty-four hours ago so Sansa pushed those words away and nuzzled into Dany’s neck.

“I’m so sorry for hurting you. I wish I had never stood you up that day. But it’s real, Dany. This is happening and I’m not going anywhere.” Sansa feathered kisses up her neck until she was back on her mouth, hungrily kissing her.

Dany’s hands moved to Sansa’s face and neck. Then a hand trailed downward to the top of her chest and paused. Sansa understood Dany’s request and nodded into the kiss. When she felt Dany palm her breast over her shirt, she gasped. She wasn’t wearing a bra and the pressure on her breast was felt all the way down to between her thighs. Dany kissed her firmly and deeply while her thumb brushed over her nipple. Breathing hard, her senses on overload, Sansa gripped tightly onto Dany’s back.

“Quarantine is terrible but I will say, not wearing bras is amazing. I’m all for sexy lace lingerie but for general every day I might have to make this a habit even when quarantine ends,” said Dany after she broke from the kiss to lick and suck along Sansa’s neck.

Sansa couldn’t help chuckling and she immediately relaxed, loosening her arms around Dany, who did not stop kissing Sansa’s neck or touching her breast.

“Don’t forget makeup. I still love a good lipstick and eyeliner but I definitely don’t miss putting it on every day,” Sansa said breathily.

She could feel Dany’s smile against her ear as she then spent a couple of minutes licking around the edge of her ear and nibbling on her earlobe.

“Did that help?” Dany asked in a whisper.

“Yes,” sighed Sansa, knowing she wasn’t referring to the puddle she’d turned into from Dany’s talented tongue on her ear. The desire she felt was still strong but she was no longer on the edge of panic at everything she was feeling.

Her girlfriend’s hot mouth moved back to Sansa’s neck and her hand continued to gently touch and squeeze her breast, not enough to pressure her to do more but it definitely had intent. Intent to pleasure her, intent to communicate desire. And Sansa did feel pleasure, she did feel Dany’s desire and her own. Instead of overthinking it, Sansa gripped Dany’s hips to pull her down just as she slightly lifted her hips and the moan Dany made into her neck caused a wave of arousal to wash over her. Then she heard the squeak of the library door.

Dany scrambled off Sansa, and she got up out of the chair, looking towards the door. It was Bran and Rickon.

Rickon had a smug smile on his face. He turned to Bran and said, “Told you this is what Robb and Theon were referring to this morning at breakfast. You owe me ten golden dragons.”

“Rickon!” scolded Sansa, surprised her younger brothers had bet on this and doing her best to look like she hadn’t just been making out with her girlfriend.

Bran had a confused look on his face. “I don’t understand. How did I not see this? I can usually tell what people are going to do before they figure it out themselves.”

Sansa allowed herself a smile when Dany said, “Don’t feel bad, Bran. Robb and the others had no idea either. Even Sansa was clueless for a while.”

Rickon asked Sansa, “So are you like Arya? And are you guys dating?”

“First of all, I’m like me. Second of all, no, I’m not _bisexual_ like Arya, I’m a _lesbian_. And yes, Dany’s my girlfriend.” Sansa didn’t know if it was Rickon’s middle school immaturity but now that she was out, she was going to make sure he was comfortable with saying the words she and Arya preferred to use.

Rickon whispered to Bran, “That’s five more dragons you owe me.”

“Okay, the bet thing is done,” said Dany with a cheerful firmness. “Why are you here?”

“Mom wanted to see you two,” responded Bran. “She’s in the kitchen.”

Dany nodded then ushered the boys out of the library. She turned to Sansa. “I think that’s everyone in the family now. Well, except for Arya.”

“I texted her last night that we kissed. So that’s all the immediate family anyway.” Sansa sighed and sat back in her chair. “We’re not having the best of luck, are we?”

Dany tilted her head and furrowed her brow.

“I mean, that’s three interruptions. Three! Out of five kissing sessions. Six if you count that brief kiss before the puzzle challenge.”

“I do,” huffed Dany proudly. “Wait, so you’re counting last night in my room and then your room as one session?”

“Of course,” Sansa quickly replied, as if there were any other way of thinking. She ignored the amused look on Dany’s face. “Okay, so a fifty percent success rate is a poor showing, in my opinion.”

“Oh, I don’t know. Being interrupted isn’t so bad as long as I get to keep kissing you. I’ll be doing it so much, you’ll lose count of the number anyway,” Dany said seductively as she moved to straddle Sansa again. “How about another quick minute before going to see what your mom wants?”

Sansa smiled, grabbed the back of Dany’s neck, and pulled her into a kiss.

*::::*

Sansa and Dany walked into the kitchen and met a smiling Catelyn.

She walked over to give her mother a hug and then Sansa went to stand beside Dany, who sat on a high stool at the kitchen island. Sansa was nervous.

“Well, I’m glad everything seems to be resolved,” said Catelyn, winking at Sansa. “I trust everything’s all out in the open with your siblings?”

“Yeah…” replied Sansa cautiously.

“All right. Moving on. I know you girls have final exams this week. Jon fortunately doesn’t have any of his own but he is giving one for his course so I know you’re all busy. We’re getting low on supplies and I was thinking that we should head out to the stores when finals are done. A good time would be during the week but since my class, as well as Bran’s and Rickon’s classes, won’t be done for another few weeks, and your dad, Robb, and Theon have work, it falls to you, Dany, and Jon.”

“Sure thing, Mom. So, we have a week to go through what we have and make up a list?” Sansa replied, her nervousness going away now that it seemed her mother just needed to talk about shopping tasks.

“Right. We’re also low on Bran’s medications and I’ll need you to get the refills from the pharmacy.”

“No problem,” Sansa said. “Oh, do you think you and Dad would want to go for a walk with me in a couple of days? To talk?”

“Yes, I think so. I’ll talk to your father and let him know. He can take a day off.”

“Thanks,” she replied, smiling at her mother.

Catelyn smiled and then turned to Dany. “I also wanted to check in with you about your summer plans. I’m assuming you’ve managed to adjust whatever changed about your schedule to make it fit with staying here after all?”

Dany confidently returned Catelyn’s smile with one of her own and answered, “Yes. Sansa helped me move things around.”

“I’m sure she did,” Catelyn responded easily, raising an eyebrow.

“No… just… no,” Sansa stammered. She had gone from warm feels over her impending talk with her accepting parents to horror at her mother’s innuendo, not happy at all that her girlfriend and mother were sharing suggestive remarks about her. She turned to her mom and hurriedly said, “Is that all? We’d like to get back to studying.”

“Of course, my darlings,” said Catelyn, smiling at them innocently.

Sansa took Dany’s hand and they were almost out of the kitchen when Catelyn spoke again.

“Sansa?”

She turned her head to look at her mother.

“I was right, wasn’t I? About the sparks?”

Sansa blushed red and Dany laughed, wrapping her arms around a flustered Sansa.

“That’s enough teasing my girlfriend, Mrs. Stark,” said Dany. “Her blushes are mine to play with now.”

Catelyn laughed and replied, “Noted. And please, call me Catelyn.”

Sansa gratefully let a laughing Dany drag her out of the kitchen. The thought that she was done with uncomfortable talks for the day went away when they walked into the library and she saw Jon waiting.

“Hi, um, can I speak with you, Dany?” he asked. He looked like a sad puppy but Sansa still wanted to kick him. Hard.

Dany took a deep breath and pulled Sansa back out into the hall. The door remained open so she could see him watching them.

“You don’t have to talk to him, Dany,” whispered Sansa.

“I want to hear him out. I’m not as angry as I was last night and hopefully, he’s had enough time to really think out a good apology.”

Sansa nodded but before walking back, she pulled Dany into a heated kiss.

A possessive move? Yup. Insecurity showing? Absolutely.

But she’d spent months in torment about what she thought was happening with Jon and Dany and she couldn’t help the need to show him that Dany was hers. A part of her just needed to remind herself, too. She knew Dany understood because she kissed her back. Sansa also received another message when she felt a sharp bite on her lower lip followed by a tender tongue. Her girlfriend was saying she was giving her this but not to push it.

Sansa pulled away from the kiss sheepishly. Jon was politely looking away, giving them space.

Walking back inside, Sansa said, “I trust the three of you had a chat over your behavior after I left last night?”

“Yes, I got a proper talking to about honesty from Robb. Listen, Sans, I don’t really know what happened and you don’t have to tell me but I’m sorry if what I did put a wedge between you two.”

Sansa grunted out, “I appreciate that.” She looked him in the eye and wanted to hug him. Without his invite to Dany to stay with them, this might not have ever worked out with Dany. But she wasn’t quite ready; her jealousy and anger needed more time to be kicked to the curb.

“I’ll be back in a little bit,” Dany said, leaning upward to give her a short kiss, which swept away Sansa’s dark thoughts and the bit of anxiety that had formed from her possessive display with that kiss.

She nodded, then Dany and her brother left the library. Sansa directed her thoughts away from what happened with Jon and onto the perfection that was her girlfriend. She took out her phone to call her sister.

*::::*

Sansa got so caught up with studying, she was a little bit late for dinner. Hurrying to the dining room, everyone was already seated but thankfully Dany had kept the seat next to her empty.

“Here’s the dragon tamer now,” joked Theon.

“Shut up, Theon,” said Robb and Dany at the same time.

Sansa blushed fiercely and glared at Theon as she sat down. Dany comforted her with a hand on her thigh which helped to relax her but she knew what was coming by the looks on her brothers’ faces. Her parents looked positively gleeful.

“But Arya’s not here,” Sansa argued out loud, thinking that would be the end of it. That ray of sunshine disappeared when she saw Jon break out the tablet, setting it up on one end of the table.

“Fuck,” Sansa huffed.

“Language, darling,” laughed Catelyn.

Sansa felt queasy. If she hadn’t been so busy studying, she would’ve remembered to warn Dany. But it hadn’t occurred to her that her family would do this so soon. She only hoped her girlfriend found it all endearing instead of embarrassing.

“Okay, get on with it,” Sansa said, rolling her eyes. Jon initiated the video call.

“What’s going on?” Dany asked, whispering in her ear.

“You’ll see,” muttered Sansa. She decided to try one more time and looked to Robb. “Is this all really necessary?”

But it was too late. Arya’s image came on screen.

“Gendry! Get over here, we’re on!” Arya’s voice came in loud and clear. They could hear furniture scraping and then saw Gendry move into view behind Arya. He looked happy and Sansa wished she’d taken video when it had been his turn to go through this just so she could remind him of how red he’d gotten at being put on the spot.

“All right. Listen up,” Arya stated loudly. “House Stark has taken a dragon under its cloak of protection.”

“It’s not a marriage, Arya!” interrupted Sansa. She chanced a glance at Dany who seemed to now realize this was about their relationship. The corner of her mouth quirked and Sansa sighed. At least Dany was finding this amusing. She leaned over to Dany’s ear and whispered, “Don’t worry, it’s very short.”

Arya continued, “And we Starks always like to remind additions of what it means to be pack.”

When Arya didn’t carry on, Sansa was a bit stunned. She gave a curt nod to her sister, recognizing that she had finished her part without making fun of Dany like she could have.

“We protect one another and keep each other warm,” Jon said.

“I’m sure Sansa has no problem fulfilling that obligation,” laughed Theon.

Robb put a hand on Theon’s arm and turned to Dany. “We share our strengths. I like to think that means we don’t try to shoulder things alone.”

“We’re family,” said Catelyn gently. Her mom smiled at Dany and Dany smiled at her. Sansa put her hand over Dany’s, which had begun squeezing her thigh tightly.

“When the snows fall,” rumbled Ned, clearly enjoying himself.

“And the white winds blow,” said Rickon, obviously pleased he’d gotten his part right.

“The lone wolf dies,” Bran chimed in as if he were instructing a student.

Sansa took a breath and squeezed Dany’s hand. As the girlfriend, Sansa had the last part. “But the pack survives.”

She turned to Dany and smiled at her watery eyes. Leaning over, she softly kissed her. Just as Sansa pulled away, Arya spoke again.

“So don’t fuck with my sister or winter will come for you.”

“Arya!” scolded Sansa.

Dany started laughing and then everyone else laughed, clinking their glasses together and downing their drinks. Sansa was still ticked off that they hadn’t talked to her about it first but she was happy that Dany took it so well.

Conversations veered off as they began eating and Arya exited the chat.

“So, you guys do this for every new relationship?” asked Dany, turning to Jon who was sitting on the other side of her.

“Only when we know it’s serious,” Jon said. “It’s not about relationship milestones, it’s about seeing the connection between you, and making sure you know what you’re getting yourself into with our family. Gendry didn’t get his until he’d been seeing Arya for four months, and her girlfriend before him took about six. Talisa got hers after a couple of months.”

“It’s not a shovel talk, is what he means, despite that little add-on at the end by Arya,” huffed Sansa.

Robb laughed. “Yeah. It’s supposed to be a welcome. Like, we see you, you matter to her which means you matter to us and we’ve got your back.”

“Why so long for Arya?” asked Dany.

“Because she’s hard to read and we couldn’t tell she really cared until well into the relationships,” replied Jon.

“What about Ygritte?” Dany wondered.

Sansa answered, “She refuses to eat dinner with us when we’re all here. Arya has tried to ambush her but Ygritte is wily.”

She laughed at Jon who chuckled, obviously delighted by his wild girlfriend who could outsmart their younger sister.

“And how many times have they done this for you?” Dany asked Sansa quietly.

Sansa blushed and looked down.

“None,” replied Robb, his eyes twinkling. “None of them were worth the bother.”

She could feel Dany’s gaze on her and Sansa slowly turned to look at her. Warm, proud eyes met hers. Sansa smiled and then smiled at the rest of her family. Her girlfriend was amazing and important to her, and her family had recognized that and made her their own.

Later after dinner, Sansa had gone back to the library to study some more. Dany understood that she needed to focus and left her alone, going down to the basement to hang out with the others. At around eleven, Dany stopped by to kiss her goodnight. It was a nice ten-minute break of eager lips and groping hands. After Dany left, Sansa reluctantly went back to work.

When it got close to midnight, Sansa spent time making sure her notes and readings were organized and took them up to her bedroom. It was going to be an open note, open book test but that didn’t necessarily mean easy, and given that it was an essay, it was important that she be able to easily find the references needed to support her arguments. She got ready for bed and went over them one more time.

Sansa finally put away her notes some time close to two in the morning, feeling restless. Knowing she needed to sleep, she tossed and turned, trying to get comfortable, but after about twenty minutes Sansa got out of her bed and quietly walked through the bathroom and over to Dany’s room. She opened the door and whispered a greeting.

It was dark but she heard movement in the bed and saw the shape of Dany’s head rise up and fall back down on her pillow in a huff. Sansa felt bad for waking her and was about to go back to her room when she saw Dany scoot over to one side of her bed and throw back the blankets. She smiled and got in the bed, spooning Dany from behind and wrapping an arm around her waist.

“Are you sure you weren’t weirded out by that Stark welcome earlier?” Sansa whispered.

“Mmm, no, it was perfect,” murmured Dany sleepily, taking hold of Sansa’s hand which was on her stomach and interlacing their fingers, pulling Sansa closer to her as she yawned. “Never felt… more accepted.”

From the subsequent silence and deep breathing, Sansa knew Dany had fallen back to sleep. She snuggled closer, feeling so grateful that Dany was in her life. Comforted by her girlfriend’s warmth, Sansa quickly joined her.

*::::*

The day after her first final exam, Sansa went on that walk with her parents. She didn’t go into all the details of her year and coming to terms with her sexuality, or every detail of what she had gone through with Dany and Jon’s lie, but she shared enough for them to know that this relationship with Dany wasn’t a new thing, that it had been developing between them for months. Catelyn and Ned reassured their daughter that Dany was delightful and that they were very happy for her. Sansa came back from that walk and tackled her girlfriend in the library, planting as many kisses as she could on Dany’s face and neck.

Finals week became an odd combination of getting to know each other and isolating themselves to study. Making out was always at Sansa’s pace, though sometimes the pace sped up. Dany was unlike any partner she’d ever had. Every moment with her was wonderful. Even Dany’s support for Sansa’s suggestion that they continue taking time for themselves, such as Sansa’s walks in the wood and Dany’s gardening, made Sansa feel valued and respected. She liked to think she’d had a couple of decent relationships in the past but everything was more with Dany. More colorful, more alive, more solid, just… more.

Making time to be on their own during the day did not extend to their nights. They didn’t make out every night before bed, sometimes it was just cuddling and talking or watching a movie or show on Sansa’s TV, but they had taken to sleeping together every night. Watching a sleeping Dany next to her, waking up to her girlfriend’s smiles, Sansa’s love for her grew every day.

The sounds Dany made when she trailed her kisses over Dany’s body made her heart race. She loved the way Dany would trust her as she explored and touched while asking questions. Dany never made her feel small for asking questions. As her confidence grew, things became more heated between them. One or the other would stop before it got to a place Sansa wasn’t ready for but Sansa could feel that soon, very soon, her questions would be less about what making love with her was going to feel like or entail and more about begging Dany to make her feel it as soon as possible.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Dany was in the kitchen when Sansa emerged from a long morning study session in the library. They were several days into finals week and Sansa was stressed out. Dany’s final was tomorrow but she was feeling confident so she had several hours to devote to Sansa before buckling down with her own studying. She quickly gave her tired girlfriend a hug and sat her down on a stool at the island where she placed a sandwich and a glass of water in front of her.

Sansa gave her a warm smile and said, “Will you be like this when I come home after a long day at work, too?”

“Absolutely not. By that time, I’ll be a frazzled academic, too busy to pay attention to my frazzled academic partner,” Dany replied without missing a beat.

Her remark hit where she’d wanted it to and Dany heard that wonderful laugh that she couldn’t get enough of. She watched as Sansa took a bite of the sandwich she’d prepared and was satisfied by the pleased groan Sansa let out. After a few moments of watching her, Dany spoke again.

“You’re nearly there, you can do this.”

“I know, but I hate that they’re at the end,” huffed Sansa, taking a drink of water. “It never fails. I always have finals on the last two days. You’re lucky yours is tomorrow.”

“Well, let’s not think about that. I’ll probably have a late night but for now, I have a surprise for you. Finish up that sandwich and we can get started.”

Dany’s surprise was an impromptu video chat bake-off against Arya and Gendry. Earlier that morning, she’d seen Catelyn chatting with Arya on the tablet which was propped up on the kitchen island and when Dany walked by, Arya called her over to talk. Given the last thing Arya said to her through a tablet, she’d expected the girl to give her grief, which she did, but one thing led to another and soon they were talking about their favorite food shows. Arya quickly came up with the idea of a competition to get Sansa to unwind from studying. The younger Stark girl thought she could fluster Dany with some other ideas of how to get Sansa to unwind but Dany only rolled her eyes at the amateurish effort, and when she saw Gendry walk by Arya without a shirt, she was able to get Arya to blush with some carefully worded innuendos of her own. Arya laughed and their friendship was born.

“Okay, so we’re going to bake bread and be judged by Gendry’s roommate? How will that be fair? He can taste theirs and won’t be able to taste ours,” Sansa complained after Dany explained the challenge.

“It’s just something fun. And he’ll judge by how pretty it looks,” Dany said patiently as she set up the tablet.

Arya came on and she and Gendry were soon high-fiving and trash-talking Sansa and Dany.

Sansa quickly got over her hesitation and was soon giving Dany orders on ingredients and where to find her favorite bowls and measuring cups. Normally Dany would have balked at such orders but coming from Sansa, she happily supported her girlfriend’s desire to annihilate the opposition.

During the dough’s rising times, Dany would fit in studying in the library while Sansa read in her room. When it was time to knead, the two of them traded off barbs with Arya and Gendry. Well, Gendry mostly just took orders from Arya while she did most of the verbal sparring on their behalf but Dany saw how he calmed her frustration when the dough wasn’t as springy as it needed to be. He was a supportive boyfriend and Dany found she got under Arya’s skin the best when she teased him about how wonderful he was. It seemed only fair to do so as often as possible given how much the girl liked to mess with Sansa, and Dany was nothing if not a loyal girlfriend who would vanquish all in her path to protect what was hers.

It was late afternoon and Dany was fairly certain their loaf of sandwich bread would win easily. But when it was finally ready to take out of the oven, Dany’s breath was stolen by a loose strand of hair which had slipped its way out of Sansa’s braid and came down over the side of Sansa’s forehead, over her eye. Sansa had on these cute direwolf oven mitts and was carefully taking the bread pan out of the oven to set it on the stove. Dany had already set the cooling rack on the counter, ready for when the bread was cool enough to turn out of the pan. But that fucking fly-away. Her heart lurched with longing. With the oven mitts on, Sansa raised an arm to try to move it out of her eye and was only successful at getting flour on her forehead. The concentration in her brow, the red hair that Dany suddenly, desperately needed to grip with her fingers, it all drew her in and she was soon hugging and kissing her girlfriend.

“Hey!” yelled Arya from the tablet. “We agreed no PDA during this competition!”

Looking up into Sansa’s eyes, feeling Sansa’s arms around her, Dany carefully pushed the fly-away back over Sansa’s ear and wiped the flour off her forehead. This was happiness. She had a girlfriend whose family did crazy puzzle competitions for fun, who came up with weird bake-offs over a video chat. And she was kind and intelligent to boot.

“We concede?” Dany whispered. Sansa looked at her in confusion but then she smiled and nodded.

Dany turned to the tablet and said more clearly, “We concede. You win.”

“Hey! No way! I don’t want to win by forfeit. I demand satisfaction!” Arya argued.

“That’s what Gendry is for,” replied Sansa.

“And don’t worry, we’ll leave your rug alone,” Dany quickly added before closing up the video feed. She giggled, pleased that Sansa’s competitive streak wasn’t so severe that she would insist on finishing the game.

“Come on,” Dany said, grabbing Sansa’s hand and pulling her out of the kitchen.

“Where are we going?”

“Outside. I need to see you in the sunshine!”

The two of them raced out the door and Dany didn’t stop until she had Sansa near the vegetable garden. Dany turned to Sansa, in awe of how the late afternoon sun hit her red hair, overcome by how radiant and glorious Sansa was. Dany was so happy she could feel the sting of tears in the back of her eyes.

“Are you okay?” Sansa asked softly.

“Sansa…” breathed Dany, her heart thundering in her chest. “Is it too soon to tell you? Is it too soon?”

 _Of course, it’s too soon_ , she thought and began to panic. _We’ve only just gotten together. Sansa isn’t ready for this._

“I know I’ve been the one saying to slow down, to not let ourselves get carried away, and here I am not even a week after our first kiss and I’m bursting, Sansa. I need to say it but it’s okay if you don’t… I don’t want to scare you.”

Sansa’s eyes searched her face until they widened in understanding. And then strong arms pulled her into a tight hug.

“Gods, I thought it was just me,” rushed Sansa in a voice that was almost a sob. “How can it be too soon when we’ve been falling for months? I’ve already said my heart is yours, that I’m yours. I don’t care about the timing, Dany. I feel it, too.”

“Good,” said Dany, pulling back enough to look at her girlfriend’s tear-filled eyes and putting her hands up to cup her cheeks. “Because I’m in love with you. I love you. And I can’t go another minute without telling you.”

Sansa chuckled through her tears and then gently pressed her lips against Dany’s.

“I love you, too.”

*::::*

Dany thought this was the best finals week she’d ever had. Finally getting together with Sansa, supporting each other while studying, getting to know one another better, it was pure bliss.

Her own exam turned out to be a breeze. It certainly helped that Sansa had told her she loved her the day prior. And she used the rest of her time helping Sansa study, earning her laughs and smiles at dinner time or in the basement with Sansa’s family, and distracting her for the occasional, breathless break in the library.

The nights before falling asleep were spent catching up on all the missed kisses and touches they should’ve shared before lockdown, all the cuddles and conversations, all the late nights where Sansa or Dany would’ve said it’s too late to go back to a separate apartment or dorm room and to just spend the night together.

Sometimes they shared Dany’s bed but Dany much preferred staying in Sansa’s room, surrounded by Sansa’s smell and her things. She enjoyed asking questions about trophies and medals, pictures of friends, and dolls and stuffed animals that still had their place on shelves. She wanted to know every single thing about her girlfriend.

The other thing she enjoyed was how Sansa’s comfort level in their physical activities increased. Early on, Dany frequently asked questions to make sure Sansa was okay with different things, like the amount of pressure her teeth made on Sansa’s skin, or whether the pinch on her nipples over her shirt was too much. In this way, it gave Sansa the confidence to ask her own questions.

Their makeout sessions were now very much heated and it took an incredible amount of willpower for the two of them to slow down or change their positions so they wouldn’t get carried away. She could sometimes see Sansa’s frustration whenever she did so, and Dany felt the same when Sansa was the one to pull back, but she never pushed. Dany wanted Sansa to be the one to initiate the next step.

After finals were done, dinner that night was a celebration. And the kids had a bit of a party afterwards in the basement. It was also a send-off for Theon, who was moving back to his apartment the next day. He got drunk but happily hugged Sansa and Dany and wished them well.

She and Sansa were tired that night so they didn’t stay very long in the basement. Sansa smiled at her as she dragged her upstairs and they kissed lazily before falling asleep on Dany’s bed.

Dany woke up the next morning and left a still sleeping Sansa in bed when she hopped in the shower. She wasn’t in there for very long, and was shampooing her hair, when she heard Sansa come into the bathroom.

“Good morning, babe. Hope you slept well,” Dany called out as she rinsed the shampoo from her hair.

The shower curtain opened and in stepped a very naked and blushing Sansa.

“Yes, I did,” answered Sansa shyly.

Dany gaped at her, unsure at what to do, at what Sansa wanted. Her heart raced at the possibilities.

“We haven’t actually gone topless with each other yet and I know it’s sudden, but I just had this urge. And maybe it was stupid. It’s a stupid idea, right?”

Sansa was chewing on her lip as her eyes kept trying to avoid staring but still ended up captivated by Dany’s body, and Dany smiled at her eager girlfriend.

“Switch places,” Dany said with a smirk.

Once Sansa was under the water, Dany allowed her eyes to take in her girlfriend.

“Wet enough for you?” Sansa asked, no doubt remembering that Dany had told her of how turned on she was whenever she got to see Sansa’s wet skin from her showers.

“If you aren’t now, you will be soon enough,” Dany said huskily.

The redhead blushed, as expected, but then she lunged at her for a hug, which was not expected. Soon they were both blushing and gasping at the feeling of so much skin against skin.

They didn’t have sex that morning, and touches remained above the waist, but Dany enjoyed the smug look on Sansa’s face when their shower was done and Sansa traced the marks she’d left behind on the tops of Dany’s breasts, knowing they’d last for days.

*::::*

As planned, a few days later Sansa, Jon, and Dany took their lists from Catelyn and went shopping. They went first thing in the morning because in demand items sold out fast and also because when they got back, Jon was going to leave the house and stay with Ygritte. Now that the two of them had made up and transitioned to a monogamous relationship, a distance thing wasn’t going to work for either of them.

Sansa pulled up to the house and quickly took the groceries and supplies to the laundry room where she greeted her mother who was busy wiping everything down with disinfectant wipes. Produce would be washed separately.

Dropping her mask on the pile of things that needed to be washed, Sansa said, “Things were busy at the store and I wanted to be back before Jon left so I’ll head back out to the pharmacy after he leaves.”

“Okay, that sounds fine. Dany’s already upstairs,” her mother said and Sansa thanked her before heading up the servant stairs.

It was probably overkill. It wasn’t as if Sansa had spent a whole workday in the factory like her dad and Robb did, but worry over Bran meant Sansa didn’t want to take any chances and she told Dany and Jon to take showers when they got home. She walked into her room and promptly stripped, placing her clothes in a bag that already held Dany’s clothes to be taken downstairs to the laundry room.

“It’s been about twenty minutes since I sprayed down the bathroom so jump in whenever you’re ready,” Dany called out from her room.

Sansa smiled, grateful that her girlfriend didn’t tease her for her over-protectiveness.

After she was done, she sprayed down the shower again with disinfectant spray, got dressed, and went into Dany’s room.

“Any problems?”

“None at all,” Dany said, pulling her in for a hug. “Busy but I found most everything your mom put on the list.”

“Me too. I need to go back out to the pharmacy, though.”

Dany laughed. “Does that mean you’re going to do a repeat of all of this?” she asked, gesturing towards the bathroom.

“Yup.”

“Better you than me. I’ll leave the spray in the bathroom.”

Not long after that it was time for Jon to go. Ygritte texted she was on her way and Jon said his goodbyes to everyone still at the house, having already said goodbye to Ned and Robb earlier in the morning.

They were all outside just as Ygritte drove up. Sansa hadn’t seen her in a few months and she waved hi just as Jon was giving more hugs to Bran and Rickon, promising they would connect online to play video games together. Catelyn hugged Jon one more time and then hustled the younger boys into the house.

“Hey Daenerys,” said Ygritte after she’d gotten out of the car.

“Hey yourself,” answered Dany.

Sansa was surprised. “You two know each other?”

“Sure,” answered Ygritte. “I’d see this one fending off the googly eyes of that one every now and then when I dropped in to say hi to Jon at the library.”

“Oh,” Sansa replied, feeling a bit uncomfortable. The gleam in Ygritte’s eyes made her think she was missing something.

Her attention was soon on Jon, who was waiting to hug them.

“You two take care of each other and I’ll see you soon. We’ll do video chats and stuff, okay?” Jon gave a hug to Dany and then gave Sansa a great big bear hug. Afterwards, he carried his bags to Ygritte’s car.

As Jon was putting his stuff in the car, Ygritte took a few steps closer to Sansa and Dany though she was still at least ten feet away.

“Hey, so Jon told me what happened. Sorry about that.”

“What do you mean? You didn’t do anything,” said Sansa.

Ygritte grimaced and inhaled through her teeth. “Well, I didn’t tell him to lie and don’t worry, I’ve got plans to make him see the error of his ways about that. But I did kind of, sort of, definitely tell him to try to get with Dany here in the first place.”

Dany let out a loud laugh and Sansa’s mouth dropped open.

“What? She’s hot,” Ygritte said, looking at the two women like they were the ones who said something shocking. “I thought she could be pulled in as a third.”

“Jon did not mention that,” Sansa practically growled, then glared at Jon. “You did not mention that at all.”

Jon grinned sheepishly, gave a half-hearted wave, then got in the car without answering.

Sansa put an arm around Dany’s waist and pulled her close. In response, Dany’s laughter got even louder.

“Now I’m almost regretting telling your brother we should keep it just him and me. I think I could have fun with the two of you,” said Ygritte with a chuckle.

“It was nice seeing you again, Ygritte. Keep my brother out of trouble,” Sansa said politely through clenched teeth.

Ygritte winked and walked to her car.

“Let me know if you change your mind,” Ygritte called out.

“Bye, Ygritte,” Dany said, leaning her head on Sansa’s shoulder.

Sansa could feel her trying to stifle her laughter and it only increased her annoyance.

Ygritte laughed and got in the car, started it up, and drove away.

“She was just joking, Sans.”

“Yeah, well, she wasn’t funny.”

Dany lightly gripped Sansa’s chin and turned her face towards her.

“You’re the only redhead I want, Sansa Stark.”

Sansa looked into her eyes and softened.

She said, “She was right about one thing. You are hot.”

Dany smiled. “Come on, sweet girl. Have a snack before you head out again,” she said, pulling her back into the house.

*::::*

Sansa repeated her careful routine when she returned from the pharmacy. This time Dany told her that she would spray down her bedroom while she was in the shower and to come into her room when she was done.

When Sansa stepped out of the shower, she was surprised to see a bathrobe next to the set of clean clothes she’d set out on the sink counter. It wasn’t her bathrobe; she’d left hers back at her apartment before coming here.

As in all things having to do with them, Dany left the clothes to give her a choice. They’d taken a few showers together and being naked together wasn’t uncomfortable. But dry and naked together? On a bed? That would be new.

Biting her lip, she pulled on her underwear and the robe. She picked up the disinfectant spray that Dany left out and sprayed down the shower and then the sinks.

Walking into Dany’s room, she glanced at the door to make sure it was locked. Turning back to Dany, she said, “All these weeks and I didn’t know you had a robe.”

“Huh,” Dany replied with a smirk. “I wonder why that is.”

Sansa flashed to those early days of quarantine, when Dany did all she could to fluster her with her body. She’d been so clueless then. Looking at Dany, she saw she was wearing a loose t-shirt and a pair of sleep shorts. It was early afternoon and much too soon for bed. Sansa smiled, knowing how her girlfriend wanted to pass the time before dinner.

“So, my room and the bathroom stink like disinfectant, and you have me in this robe. Whatever shall we do?”

Dany smiled and walked up to her, loosening the knot on the robe. “Whatever we want.”

_::_

“I have something special planned for tomorrow,” whispered Sansa as she kissed along Dany’s stomach.

“Mmm, what?” breathed Dany.

Sansa’s robe had long been removed, as well as Dany’s shirt and shorts. Now they were just in their panties and they’d been kissing and touching each other above the waist for the last hour.

“Our date. I put in an order for takeout from the café you said we would go to on our first date. We’ll have lunch by the heart tree.”

Dany bit her lip and pulled Sansa up, wrapping her legs around Sansa before kissing her. Pulling away, she said, “How romantic.”

Sansa liked the new position, feeling the heat of Dany’s center against her.

“You feel so good, Dany,” whispered Sansa as she tentatively pressed her hips forward and was rewarded with a small moan from her girlfriend. “Does this feel good?”

“Yes,” whispered Dany, raising her hips to meet Sansa’s slow grinding.

It continued like that for a while, their bodies sweating against each other, Sansa sucking hard on Dany’s neck as a hand palmed her breast, Dany’s hands gripping her back and arching into her.

“Sansa,” gasped Dany. “If you want to stop or change positions, now would be a good time.”

Sansa’s heart started pounding so hard, she thought it would explode right out of her. She didn’t want to stop. She wanted to see Dany fall apart beneath her. Sansa focused her thrusting to an angle that elicited the loudest moans from Dany.

“It’s okay. I don’t want to stop,” whispered Sansa, rolling Dany’s nipple between her fingers.

“Oh gods, just like that,” groaned Dany. Then, seeming to remember what Sansa had just said, she asked, “Are you sure?”

“I want you, Dany.” Sansa pressed her forehead against Dany’s and asked, “Can I touch you?”

Dany whimpered, “Yes.” She grabbed Sansa’s hand off her breast and slowly pushed it down until Sansa slipped inside her underwear. “Soft at first. Harder when I tell you.”

“Inside?”

“Please. But only if you’re ready.”

Sansa nodded, her arousal spiking at the feeling of Dany’s wetness. She was hesitant at first but Dany reminded her that it was okay to be slow and exploratory. So, Sansa took her time learning what Dany felt like, listening to what inspired gasps and what caused uncomfortable creases in her brow. Eventually, she found a rhythm and position that was comfortable for her and worked for Dany. When she slipped inside her girlfriend, Sansa nearly panicked at how overwhelming it felt, wanting so much to please her girlfriend and worried she wasn’t up to the task. But Dany whispered her name and they locked eyes. Almost immediately, Sansa relaxed and appreciated how even now, Dany was giving Sansa a chance to withdraw if she wanted to. One tentative thrust, and Dany’s head dropped back on the pillow. Sansa nearly came right then at the sight, at the power she felt, at being able to make Dany feel that good. And she was thankful for Dany’s words and sounds, letting her know how much pleasure she was giving her and helping her figure out what Dany liked, her breathy jokes about when to dip and when to stroke with her quill making Sansa smile. Making love with Dany was passionate but also fun and she’d never experienced it like that before.

Her gaze had been so trained on Dany’s face, loving how she was arching up against her, that when she glanced down, she frowned at the underwear that hid what her hand was doing. The only word that formed in her mind was ‘off’. And without warning, Sansa pulled away.

“Wha… Sansa!” Dany yelled out in a frustrated growl.

“Oh gods, I’m sorry! Did that hurt?” Sansa asked worriedly. She’d intended to pull off Dany’s panties and didn’t even think about how removing her hand would feel in that moment.

Dany threw her hands over her face and started laughing in between gasps as Sansa lay over her, pressing gentle kisses on her hands, bringing them down so she could kiss her face and lips, whispering apologies and explanations about panties.

Sansa at first felt embarrassed and insecure but Dany’s laughter, which was soon joined by her own, became a comforting release between friends as well as lovers. As the laughter faded, Sansa looked into her girlfriend’s eyes and saw all the love she ever wanted. Dany raised a hand to brush back her hair and leaned up to kiss her.

“I’m okay, it didn’t hurt. Well, not in that way. I was close, though. _That_ hurt.”

“Really?” Sansa asked excitedly. It was reassuring to hear that she had been doing it right. Dany smiled at her and chuckled.

“Just shut up and kiss me,” Dany said softly. “And give me a heads-up next time you plan on stopping.”

“Can I still take off your underwear?”

Dany smiled and bit her lip as she nodded. Sansa sat up on her knees and reached for the waistband. Pulling them down Dany’s legs, Sansa’s breath caught in her throat at seeing a naked Dany below her.

“You’re beautiful,” whispered Sansa. She settled between Dany’s legs and trailed kisses up her body and to her neck and then her mouth. Deepening the kiss until she could feel Dany’s fingers digging into her back, trying to pull Sansa closer.

When Dany began bucking up into her, Sansa moved her hand to Dany’s center and slowly worked to bring her back to the edge. There were less words this time as Sansa remembered what worked before.

She watched the way Dany yelled out ‘harder’ and thrusted up into her hand, the way her breathing got faster as Sansa complied, her moans louder and more frequent.

“Sansa… Sansa…” cried Dany. Sansa felt Dany’s body begin to tense beneath her. It was awe-inspiring and she let her love for Dany keep her focused. The only thing that mattered in this moment was giving her the bliss that she deserved.

“I love you, Dany. I love you,” whispered Sansa.

And that’s when Dany came undone, crying out and holding Sansa’s back as if she was the only thing keeping her together. Pride swelled in Sansa, as well as a bit of relief. A bit of awkwardness with the unexpected stop in the middle but it all worked out. She held her girlfriend, kissing her as she came down from her high.

After a while, Sansa moved so that they were lying next to each other.

“That was amazing,” Dany breathed.

“You were amazing,” replied Sansa, leaning forward to kiss Dany.

Dany pushed forward until she was laying on top of Sansa.

She whispered into Sansa’s mouth, “I want to make you feel just as good. Can I?”

“Yes… I’m ready…”

They smiled at each other and Dany moved back so she could pull off Sansa’s underwear. She moved forward to lay on Sansa again, kissing her and palming her breast until Sansa couldn’t wait any longer.

Dany asked, “How do you want this, Sans? My fingers? My mouth? Both? My thigh works, too. Or you can touch yourself while I kiss you. Whatever you want.”

Sansa wanted to say all the above, and oh how her heart raced at the thought of Dany’s mouth on her, but the possibilities were also overwhelming and she wanted Dany’s face close to her own during this first time.

“Fingers… please…”

Instead of moving her hand to where Sansa needed her, Dany proceeded to drive her wild with slow, wet kisses down her body, paying extra-long attention to her breasts. Any time Sansa felt the slightest bit of friction between her legs, she sought to increase the pressure, only to have Dany pull herself away. It was frustrating but it also increased her desire, tightening the tension until Sansa felt like she would snap at any moment.

After what felt like hours, Dany raised herself up, locked eyes on her, and cupped her with her hand. Sansa almost sobbed in relief, desperate for Dany to keep touching her.

“Do you want this?” panted Dany.

“Yes,” whimpered Sansa.

“Do you want me?”

“Gods, yes, Dany, please. Please keep going.”

Sansa gripped the sheets with one hand and threaded the other into Dany’s hair. She looked up into warm, attentive eyes and nodded. Dany slid one and then two fingers inside her.

Kissing her hard while she held her fingers still, Dany then whispered, “Are you okay?”

The pleasure of it was too much for her to use words. Sansa could only hum and nod her head, moving her hips upward in an attempt to get Dany to press in deeper.

“You’re so perfect, Sansa,” murmured Dany, burying her face in Sansa’s neck as she continued to whisper ‘so perfect’ repeatedly.

Sansa lost track of what happened next. Heated thrusts, firm pressure and flicks of fingertips that resulted in jolts of pleasure up her spine, breathless kisses that sent Sansa’s heart soaring. She didn’t care how much noise they were making, only that Dany would make it last forever.

And when Sansa was finally brought over the edge, a euphoria so high she hoped to never be brought back down, Dany held onto her so tightly; she couldn’t tell if the shuddering waves she felt were coming from herself or from Dany.

Dany fell beside her and Sansa quickly turned to face her. Their lovemaking had been everything Sansa wanted and more; a natural progression of their relationship instead of something rushed because it was expected. She threw an arm over her waist and leaned forward to press both hard and gentle kisses on her lips. Sansa had no real intent other than to keep touching Dany, her girlfriend, her love.

They kissed each other lazily until they fell asleep, missing dinner. No one bothered them, though. And when they woke up, they took turns exploring and pleasuring each other with more than just hands and fingers.

*::::*

*::::*

Dany’s head rested on Sansa’s lap as she stared up at the red leaves of the heart tree. Summer was nearly done and school would be starting again in another three weeks.

They had finished their lunch and now they were enjoying the warm air and the shade of the tree. It was a peaceful place and after their romantic first date there several weeks ago, it became a favorite place for them to picnic and be alone. Sansa had told her it was one of her favorite places to go to be alone and find peace, and Dany liked how Sansa trusted her with it.

“I’m going to miss this when school starts again,” murmured Dany.

“Lazy summer days are always hard to let go of,” replied Sansa, her fingers slowly running through Dany’s hair.

“No, I mean us. Being around each other all the time. I know we tried to give each other space so that it wouldn’t be such a shock when summer ended and we went back but it’ll still be a big adjustment having to move out. I should probably look for an apartment since the residence halls aren’t opening any time soon.”

After an annoying number of emails, the university finally decided that they would continue with online-only classes. Catelyn and Ned said she could remain there but Sansa had recently expressed an interest in going back to her apartment and Dany didn’t feel comfortable staying at the Stark house without Sansa.

Dany’s eyes darted to Sansa’s face which looked pensive.

“What’s wrong, Sans?”

“Nothing. I was just thinking…”

“Tell me.”

Sansa looked down at her and smiled. “You know how Jeyne moved out?”

Dany’s lips slowly curled into a smile. She’d been afraid that Sansa would think this step was too soon but it looked like she wasn’t the only one thinking about it.

“Yeah?”

The redhead opened her mouth and then smiled, turning away.

“I was thinking, we’ve been sharing a living space for weeks, sleeping together every night, and I know the apartment is no country manor… I mean, sure, the bedrooms aren’t joined by a bathroom…”

Dany clucked her tongue, shaking her head. “A shame for any future roommate of yours. I’ve definitely enjoyed the benefits of the shared bathroom here. So many lustful looks directed at me after my showers. The ego boost was very gratifying.”

She waited, watching the flash of mock annoyance cross Sansa’s face. But it was brief. The sly smile that came over her girlfriend’s face caused Dany to raise a questioning eyebrow.

“As I was saying, no shared bathroom but the bedrooms are linked by a sizable walk-in closet.”

“Hmm… interesting,” Dany replied, sitting up and turning to face her girlfriend. “I imagine dressing with the closet doors open can lead to some very revealing situations.”

“Probably.”

“It would make it easier to share clothes…”

“Amongst other things,” replied Sansa, biting her lip. “Except your clothes would be too small for me. And you’d be swimming in mine.”

“On the contrary, I think I fit quite well when I’m swimming in yours.”

As expected, a familiar blush began creeping up Sansa’s neck. Flustering her was still one of her favorite things to do.

Dany leaned forward to press a kiss on the blush on her girlfriend’s neck. At the sound of Sansa’s sigh, she used her teeth to lightly nip her earlobe.

“Is that a yes?” Sansa whispered.

“Your apartment wouldn’t happen to have a library would it?”

Sansa laughed. “I can pile up some stacks if that’ll help.”

“I guess that’ll have to do,” Dany said, and before she knew it Sansa’s arms were thrown around her and she was pressed backwards to the blanket they were sitting on, Sansa’s lips taking her own.

When Sansa began nibbling down her neck, Dany spoke again as if they hadn’t been kissing at all.

“Moving in together is a sensible step. If you’ll recall, I’m vying for the status of favorite Stark significant other and I think I have the edge over Talisa. Wouldn’t want to piss off your parents by getting caught in their library again.”

Sansa lifted her head.

“We’ve been caught three times already, Dany. I think they know it’s one of our go-to places. Plus, after you ran out on me that time, leaving me to face my mother’s glare alone, you’re lucky I still kiss you in the library.”

“Hey, first of all, it’s not my fault there’s no actual lock on the door. Second, and give me all the kudos for the pun, I was _stark_ naked and you were fully clothed. Damn straight I grabbed my clothes and ran. And that’s the only time that blasted rule was ever broken, by the way. Out of how many times we’ve kissed and made out there? Rickon and Bran interrupting a makeout session doesn’t count, and that first time with your mom doesn’t count either. Catelyn didn’t even open the door and I had paused before the knock.”

Sansa sat up quickly, her eyes wide in feigned fury. Dany sat up, biting her cheek to keep from smiling. Her girlfriend loved their fake arguments and she didn’t want to be the one to ruin this one.

“A pause was not a full stop, though,” argued Sansa, the piercing blue of her eyes making Dany’s heart race, and she wished they weren’t so far from the house. “Your fingers were still inside my underwear.”

“On your hip! Barely a technicality!”

At that, Sansa broke character and laughed.

“All I’m saying is the sooner we move into our apartment, the better,” Sansa said with a smile. She gave Dany a peck on the lips, then she began gathering their trash and utensils. Dany chuckled and began helping. When they were done, they began walking back, with Sansa carrying the bags and Dany holding the folded blanket.

She turned her head slightly to glance at Sansa. There was a smirk on her face, like she was trying not to look at Dany. Dany grinned, knowing what was on her mind.

“So… wanna risk getting caught a second time?”

“Fourth time,” corrected Sansa.

“Whatever.”

Sansa lifted her chin and crinkled her brow, as if she were actually debating the idea. But Dany could see the blush rising even more up her neck and onto her cheeks. She wasn’t debating, she was imagining.

Without a word, Sansa increased the pace, her long legs striding back to the house with determination.

Dany happily watched the view from behind for several moments before speaking.

“What’s the hurry, Stark?” Dany called out, wondering why Sansa wanted to get back so quickly.

Sansa didn’t stop her speed-walking but yelled back, “My mom has to take the boys to the dentist today after lunch, remember? They should be leaving right about now. And Dad and Robb are still at work.”

It took Dany a few seconds. Okay, maybe half a minute, tops. But she got it eventually and the next thing she heard was Sansa’s laugh as she ran past her, yelling at her to hurry. A different girl might have felt embarrassed at how eager she looked but there was no way she was going to pass up the various possibilities an empty Stark house held.

Library fantasy, here they come.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, I had so much fun writing this fic. I was a bit unsure at the start but it turned out way better than I expected. I just love these two. Thanks for reading and commenting and for being such a great fandom.
> 
> As for future stories, I'll be tackling some ideas for a different fandom that I've had on the backburner for months now, and I'll be busy with that for a while. And I'm always having Daensa ideas so I'll eventually get to those, too.
> 
> You all are awesome and I hope you're safe and healthy out there in this crazy world we live in. Cheers!


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